The Collection
by myownmind
Summary: Aaron and Reid set out on what should be a simple lost and found. Unfortunately, Aaron's day really hadn't been going well and things only looked to be getting worse.
1. Chapter 1

The Collection

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing. I just like to borrow things that aren't mine. The characters of Aaron Hotchner and Spencer Reid belong to the creators of Criminal Minds. Any other characters that I borrow I will fess up to when the time comes. Some of them I may just be borrowing the general idea of the character and not the specific character itself. I'll have to see where I go with that.

I hope you enjoy what's been running around my head for the last three weeks. If you do or don't, PLEASE let me know by reviewing. Thanks!

Susanne

A/N: This is a Beta free zone so please be gentle. I try but I still miss things.

A/N: This is my first attempt at a Criminal Minds fan fiction so please be doublely kind or at least forgiving. Understanding comes to mind too. Yes, I'm a little on the nervous side.

CHAPTER ONE

He was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. Too bad he was probably fifteen years younger than her. Mentally, Rachel shrugged her shoulders. In the grand scheme of things, that really didn't matter much. It wasn't like she was going to do anything but look, right? Right?

As Rachel tried to not watch the young man sitting on the bench in front of her, she noticed that he seemed to be in some form of distress. Or at least she assumed that's what was going on. It wasn't like Rachel was particularly good looking. Well, she wasn't hideous either but the extra weight she carried around seemed to help her to blend into the back ground. Someone as young and attractive as this young man would have absolutely no desire to spend any time looking at her.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rachel saw that the kid was talking to the young girl sitting beside him. She didn't appear to be too thrilled but she stood up, slid by him and made her way down the wooden steps.

Rachel tried to turn her attention back to the country music concert that she'd come to watch. It was a weekend long jamboree. This was the third and final night. Rachel had come here simply with the intention of listening to some really good music by some of her favourite singers. Unfortunately, the young man kept dragging her eyes away from the stage.

The girl was back. Unable to pull her eyes away from the drama in front of her, Rachel watched as she handed the young man a cold bottle of water. He cracked it open and then held it up to his eye. It was the strangest thing Rachel could remember ever seeing anyone do. It didn't become any clearer as he squeezed the bottle to force the water against his skin.

No longer paying any attention to the stage, Rachel finally caught snippets of the conversation going on between the two young people. He was allergic to his straw cowboy hat he'd bought for the occasion and was trying to rinse the allergen out of his eyes where it currently resided and stung like a son of a bitch. Interesting.

There thought that something so very small could make someone who was obviously strong and trim so weak played through Rachel's mind. It would probably be the only way she'd ever be able to touch such young, smooth flesh. Rachel gave herself a physical shake. That was wrong. She knew it was wrong to pursue such vile thoughts. She'd been raised better than that. Her parents and family would be appalled. But she was so damned lonely!

It had been years since anyone but family had touched her. While that was generally okay with her, Rachel had to admit that late at night the urge to be touched out of lust played through her. It had been so long.

As Rachel half watched, the boy's girl friend got frustrated with him, stood up and left. As Rachel watched her thump down the stairs of the grand stand, the boy glanced over his shoulder again. She wasn't sure if it was to dislodge the straw residue that he gotten into his eyes or if he was actually looking at her. Finally, she decided he was actually looking at her. His blue eyes were blood shot and she had the feeling he couldn't really see very well.

"Are you all right?" Rachel asked. It was the polite thing to do after all. She tried to not notice his close cropped brown hair and his incredible body. He was young enough to be her son. Stop it!!

"Ah, I could use a little help," the young man admitted. "I think I need to get to the doctor. My allergies haven't been this bad in years."

"Well, there aren't any doctors out here but I could take you to the ambulance and the EMT's manning the First Aid station," Rachel suggested. She'd come to the jamboree alone. She did most things alone or with her family. Her mother was concerned that she enjoyed her own company a little too much. Well, maybe she was right.

"That would be great. I'd really appreciate at it," the boy stated. "I can't see very well at the moment."

"Sure, no problem," Rachel said as she climbed to her feet. She stepped down to the boy's level and began to lead him out of the bleachers. She was perversely happy about the fact that the boy appeared to be alone. She wasn't really going to do this, was she?

OOOOO

Aaron Hotchner was having a very bad day. He was grateful that no cases had come up because with everything else that was going wrong he half figured the plane would crash.

Just as he was getting ready to leave his office to escape the day from hell at six thirty at night, Aaron's phone rang. Cursing quietly under his breath, the Behavioural Analysis Unit Chief considered not answering it. He glanced out into the bull pen and saw that only Spencer Reid was still there. Finally, after the fifth ring, he picked it up. "Aaron Hotchner."

"Oh, I'm so glad I caught you! Aaron, this is Cathy dePape. My son goes to daycare with Jack," a frantic sounding woman said on the other end. Hotch wasn't even sure she'd stopped to breathe.

It took a moment for the Unit Chief to place a face to the name. It was one of the perks of his job. He rarely forgot a name or a face. Her son, Mason, had been born shortly after she'd turned forty three. "Yes, Cathy. I remember you. How can I be of assistance?" Aaron asked. All he really wanted to do on a Friday night was head home and enjoy a nice glass of hard liquor. Any kind of hard liquor would do at the moment.

"I'm terribly sorry to bother you but I'm really scared and the local police aren't doing anything," Cathy said. "My eldest son, Matt, didn't come home from a country music jamboree over in the next county last weekend. I've filed a missing person's report but the police haven't come up with any leads. I'm frantic. Matt has never disappeared before."

"I'm sorry, Cathy. I can't go to an investigation in an official capacity unless the local law enforcement has asked for my help. There's nothing I can do," Aaron said. He was only half disappointed. A young man disappearing after one of those weekends wasn't really all that surprising. Chances were he'd found a companion to help keep him warm during the weekend and wasn't quite ready to leave her behind. It seemed to happen more and more of late.

"I know. I know. I was just hoping that maybe you would be able to take a look at what they have. I've all ready talked to Matt's girl friend. They had a fight up in the bleachers the last night of the festival. That was the last time she saw him. He was having an allergy attack but she was mad at him and she just left him." Even over the phone, Aaron could hear that the woman was practically hyperventilating. He felt sorry for her. Not a good thing.

Sighing, Aaron glanced out his door again and saw that Reid was still there. If the two of them turned their considerable talents to this case, they may be able to find that boy by morning. "All right, Cathy. I'll see what I can do. Please call the officers involved and see if they can send me what information they have. I'll head out right away."

After a few pleasantries, Aaron stood up from behind his desk and headed out to the bull pen. Reid was just finishing up whatever paperwork he'd been working on and was standing up as well.

"Spencer. What are your plans for the weekend?" Aaron asked, trying to be casual. Despite his best efforts, the young genius still intimidated him. All the members of the Behavioural Analysis Unit or BAU were experts in some area. Spencer just happened to cover several of them himself.

"Um. Nothing really, why?" the young genius asked as he picked up his messenger bag and slung it over his shoulder.

"I was wondering if you could help me track down an acquaintance's son," Aaron said. It was a lot to ask. All the members of the BAU had seen truly awful things, beyond most people's ability to comprehend. He hated to ask the younger man to spend some of his rare free time looking at yet another case but he could really use his help.

"Of course," Spencer said, a slow smile gracing his thin face. He looked up to Aaron like a father. He was always willing to do anything the man asked. Besides, he really didn't have anything better to do than to catch up on some of the journals that were gathering dust on his shelves. "When do we leave?"


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you all very much for your wonderful reviews!!! I'm so excited. I'm glad you're enjoying it. I feel slightly scummy writing it but it just wouldn't go away._

_Anyway, this chapter is a little short but I'm heading away for the weekend and won't have internet access. I figured you might prefer a shorter update to no update for several days._

_Enjoy!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWO

Gently, Rachel ran a sponge over the young man's body. He was so perfect. His skin was soft as a baby's bottom and he didn't have any scars that she'd noticed so far. The water ran down his skin and collected in the over sized towel she'd laid him out on. She loved taking care of him as if he were an oversized child. She really hated that she had to keep him groggy with allergy medicine all the time but he became such a nuisance when he was alert.

Rachel wasn't a small woman. She probably weighed nearly twice as much as the boy but she also had a physical job and could handle herself well. Still, she'd had to resort to drugging Tom, as she called him, to keep him under control. Tom's eyes flickered open as the chill invaded his body. He was only dimly aware of the fact that he was lying naked. Under normal circumstances he would have been embarrassed to no end. But these weren't normal circumstances. The drug pulled him back under and Tom's eyes slid shut again.

As Rachel washed the left side of Tom's rib cage, she spotted a slightly raised and red area that was gradually turning dark blue. As her fingers ran over the swollen skin, Tom let out a small moan and shifted slightly to get away from her. It was a rather pitiful sight given the boy's lack of coordination.

Cursing under her breath, Rachel pressed the cool, wet cloth against the area a little harder. Another moan came from the drugged boy's lips but that wasn't why she was pressing against the damage. The cool, wet cloth should help with reduce the swelling.

Silently, Rachel wished that she'd never been found out. She wished that her 'friend' Mary hadn't caught her buying men's underwear three days ago. The two women had known each other since they were four and a half and six years old. They spent most of their childhoods together, playing dolls, watching movies and dreaming about boys. It wasn't until Rachel had her first boyfriend in her early twenties that she realized just how twisted their relationship had become. Mary was livid when Rachel said that they couldn't be friends anymore. It was the strongest thing the younger woman had done during their entire relationship.

But, it was a small town and the two women were frequently thrown together while just living their separate lives. Such had been the case in the department store. Rachel hadn't seen Mary in months. It had been a blessing in disguise because the slightly older Mary tended to run rickshaw over Rachel's life whenever she could.

Unfortunately, Tom had been on the receiving end of Mary's tendencies two days ago. Rachel was surprised that the bruises had taken this long to begin to appear. Mary really did have a little too much of an anger problem toward men. Rachel wasn't entirely sure what had gone on behind closed doors, Mary had forbid her to watch, but Tom sure wasn't saying anything.

Finished with Tom's sponge bath, Rachel put the basin half full of dirty water on the ground beside the metal cot and picked up the bowl of tepid broth that she'd also brought with her. The last thing she wanted was for Tom to die of dehydration or starvation. She wasn't entirely sure what her intentions were toward the young man. Until she'd fed him two Gravol instead of allergy medicine to make him dopey, Rachel hadn't really planned on doing anything to him but take him to the ambulance and the First Aid station.

Humming quietly, Rachel carefully spooned mouthfuls of broth between the boy's partly open lips. She was still appalled at her actions. The moral part of her mind told her that everything she'd done to the innocent young man was wrong. She knew it in the marrow of her bones. But she just couldn't help herself. It was a chance that wasn't going to come again.

Once Rachel had gotten the contents of the bowl into Tom, she used a large, fluffy towel to wipe off the residual water. She then slipped the other towel out from under him so he wouldn't get any more chilled than he all ready was. That done she pulled a pair of blue boxers over his legs and hips. As she did so, Rachel could swear she heard the young man sigh in relief. Smiling, she pulled a comforter over his still form. Rachel picked up the stuff she'd brought and headed out of the room.

OOOOO

"Was there anything worthwhile in the information from the police?" Spencer asked. His long, slender hands were clutched rather desperately around a large cup of steaming hot coffee. While he spoke, Reid leaned over and took a deep breath. The aroma helped to revive him.

It was six in the morning. The two FBI agents had found a hotel not far from where the jamboree had been held late last night and had agreed to an early start. The sooner they could get this wrapped up, the sooner the both of them could enjoy the rest of their weekend.

Apparently the local police weren't completely incompetent because a sealed envelope with every lead they'd followed up had been waiting for Aaron at the front desk. The clerk behind the desk had brought it to him when the two agents had settled down at a table in the hotel restaurant to have some breakfast.

"No, not really. I think we should start by asking the girl friend a few questions. She might have seen something without realizing it. After that we should head over to the jamboree site, it's a long shot but we might find something there," Aaron said. His eyes were a little red and gritty. The last case had been particularly brutal and Aaron hadn't been sleeping well as a result. Even his own bed instead of a hotel room the past three nights had done little to assuage his general sense of fatigue.

"Will there still be anything left from the music festival? I always understood them to be somewhat transitory in nature," Reid asked. He'd taken two quick swallows of the hot liquid. All ready, he could feel life returning to his limbs. Coffee was such a wonderful drug. Thank God it was still legal.

"I know," was all Hotch came up with. He knew it was probably a waste of time but he had the need to go there anyway. Underneath the exhaustion, something else was gnawing at Aaron's mind. There was something else going on here but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Are you ready to order, sir?" the waitress asked. The two FBI agents were the only people in the restaurant at this hour and so were getting a great deal of her undivided attention.

"Ah, yes, I think we are," Hotch replied. Quickly, the two men placed their orders. The waitress wrote it down on her order pad and was just turning away when Aaron added. "Do you get a lot of business when the music festival is in town?"

"Of course, the restaurant is packed with just about everyone from the time we open until we close. Most of the younger people come here to eat rather than cooking for themselves. We've had to have a few of them removed for being drunk but that doesn't happen very often. Why, are you interested in coming next year?" Reid decided the woman had all ready been into the coffee herself. He didn't think she'd paused to take a breath during the entire statement.

"No. We are here to try to find a young man who went missing after the festival. Now that it's over, will there still be anything there?" Hotch asked. Now that he'd had a few sips of his own beverage, he was starting to feel a little more human too.

"Oh, yeah. All the streets are pretty much permanent. Well, as permanent as dirt roads ever get. The downtown is still there, all the stalls for the food places and merchandise sellers. Also, the two bars will still be there. Well, they're not really bars, more like corrals with counters all along the sides for people to serve beer from ice chests. The grand stands will still be there too. The place gets used for a rodeo too so they just left things alone," the waitress said. She was idly taping her pen in her right hand on the pad in her left hand.

"Thank you. You've been very helpful," Aaron said, trying to dismiss her. His head had begun to pound. She really did talk too much and too fast. He watched as she headed back to the kitchen with their order. It was unfortunate that the restaurant had a dress code for their workers. The waitress uniform of a blue dress with a white apron really didn't do much for the poor woman.

"Well, it's a place to start," Reid said, trying to drag his boss back to the present. He'd seen Hotch's dark brown eyes follow the woman and knew that while it appeared he was staring, really he was just thinking too hard. "If everyone here is as helpful as her this shouldn't take long at all."

Smiling slightly, Aaron nodded in agreement and turned his attention back to his cup of coffee. He would need one more cup before he'd be completely awake but he had the feeling he was going to need even more to make it through the rest of the day. That did not bode well.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

The girlfriend was less help than the FBI agents had hoped for. She did tell them that the two of them had been a part of a group of about six couples that had crashed in a couple of tents. The others had been at the bar when Matt began to feel ill. He hadn't wanted to stay at the bar because the noise and congestion was making him feel even worse.

They'd moved to the grandstand between acts where it was quieter. It was during one of the acts that they'd had their argument. Brandy had wanted to return to the bar, she found the grandstands boring by comparison. Matt had wanted to stay where he was or go back to camp. Angry, Brandy had left him in the stands all by himself.

Of course now she felt absolutely terrible and kept crying at the drop of a hat. The noise had been kind of hard on Aaron's headache. The coffee woke him up but had done little for the pounding that had started in his head.

While the two agents drove from the girlfriend's house to the actual jamboree grounds, Reid idly flipped through the police file. He had it read and memorized in moments. There really hadn't been much there. Matt hadn't been declared missing until after the jamboree had been over and the participants had left so the interviews had been minimal and somewhat cursory in extent.

"I don't think we will find anything at the festival site," Reid stated as he put the papers back in the envelope. "But I agree, I think we should examine it to get a better idea of what we are looking at."

"Hmm," was Aaron's only response. He was only half paying attention. The headache was getting worse and the BAU Unit Chief was wondering if he had any aspirin in his briefcase in the back seat.

Taking the hint, Reid glanced at his superior before falling into a companionable silence. He could tell from the small wrinkles in the corner of Aaron's eyes that he was in pain. Reid hadn't seen it often but he knew to leave the older man alone. At least until they reached their destination.

OOOOO

Matt was having some very wild dreams. At least he hoped it was all just dreams. Marshalling his strength, Matt tried to force his eye lids open. Apparently he didn't have much energy because nothing happened. A small moan escaped his lips as the muscles on his right side tightened. Desperately, he tried to remember how he'd hurt himself but nothing came to mind. Before he had a chance to figure out what was going on, the drugs pulled him back into oblivion.

OOOOO

The waitress had it right, the infrastructure of the festival was still there but otherwise the place was deserted. Still, Hotch took the time to walk the entire area until they wound up sitting on the grand stand. Hotch had taken up a position part way up the left hand side and was staring out at the empty area in front of them. Unsure what to do, Reid was standing quietly beside him. He wasn't entirely sure what Hotch was expecting to find but so far the trip had been a complete waste of time.

"This is where he was taken from," Hotch stated. "How could someone take him off of the grand stands without someone seeing? Even if this section was scarcely populated, there would still be people. If Matt had been forced there would have been a commotion of some kind."

"That makes sense. So, Matt had to have gone with the UnSub or UnSubs willingly. That would reduce the possibilities to someone he knew or someone he was attracted to," Reid hypothesized.

"You're leaving one possibility out," Hotch said. He continued to stare out over the empty lot. In his mind's eye, however, the place was full of people, the stage was back and people were sitting in fold up chairs.

Reid paused to run through his thought process to see if he really had missed something. Then it dawned on him. "Matt would also go with someone he found to not be a threat."

"Exactly." Hotch stood up and stepped down the stairs. "We need to see if Matt's girlfriend remembers anyone nonthreatening around at the time of their fight."

"Could I make one suggestion?" Reid said as he easily kept up with the slightly shorter man.

"What would that be?" Hotch asked. They had covered half the distance back to the car. The festival grounds really were quite unimpressive now that they were abandoned.

"Isn't it about time for lunch?" Reid suggested hopefully. He could really do with another cup of coffee, not to mention food. As if to emphasize the point, Reid's stomach growled rather loudly.

"We'll stop along the way. What are you in the mood for?" Hotch asked, a small smile playing across his lips. Until Reid had brought it to his attention, he hadn't realized just how hungry he was.

OOOOO

It turned out that there wasn't a whole lot of choice once the two FBI agents got into town. The restaurant at the hotel was packed so they spent several minutes driving around until they found an out of the way bar that advertized home cooked meals. Pulling into the parking lot, Hotch wasn't very surprised to see that there was only one other vehicle parked nearby. Apparently this wasn't a high point in the local restaurant listings.

"I guess this will have to do," Reid said as he undid his seat belt and opened the door. If he hadn't been so hungry, he might have considered looking a little harder. The bar was in a single occupant brick building. The neon sign hanging outside the front door said 'Mar's Bar'. There were bars on the few windows that graced the front of it and there was also a large metal grate that covered the front door. An 'Open' sign flashed in the front window, inviting patrons inside.

"Let's get this over with," Hotch said, feeling somewhat defeated. The only real benefit to the place was that it was a short distance to finish the interview of Matt's girlfriend. He paused to use the remote to lock the car as they covered the distance between themselves and the front door.

OOOOO

For the fourth time, Rachel had to clean Tom up after Mary was done with him. While she worked, Rachel tried to keep her anger in check. It wasn't Tom's fault that Mary disgusted her so. It wasn't Tom's fault that she couldn't tell the older woman to go jump in a lake. If she did, Mary would go to the police and Rachel would lose Tom forever. She couldn't stomach the thought of not having the young man with her.

Rinsing the sponge out for the twentieth time, Rachel tried to wipe the blood off of Tom's soft skin. Under her ministrations, Tom was moaning quietly and trying rather unsuccessfully to get away from her. She knew it hurt. Mary had had particular fun this time using a belt on him. There were welts all over Tom's back and across his buttocks. There were also red marks across his genital area. Rachel wasn't sure she wanted to know what Mary had been doing to him there.

Rachel had Tom laid out on the thick towel again. The water dribbled down his skin and collected in the material. She'd had to remove what was left of his clothes to get at the wounds. She was going to have to come up with some kind of an excuse to keep Mary out of the cellar next time. Rachel wasn't sure if Tom was going to survive too many visits from the older woman. It was probably a really good thing that Mary had to work tonight.

This was the second basin of water Rachel had had to use. It was a major pain having to go all the way up to the next floor to get fresh water. The cellar seemed like a convenient place to house the young man but now Rachel was having her doubts. While she worked, her mind ran through the possibilities. She was renting the house that sat above the cellar but she knew that it was only a temporary situation. If she had any intention of keeping Tom for an extended period, she was going to have to find more secure surroundings.

"Diane?" Tom breathed.

The sound startled Rachel. Sitting stock still, she stayed that way, hoping desperately that Tom would go back to sleep. She knew that it was getting close to time to dose him again but she'd been putting it off. Mary had brought some Valium that she'd conned out of her veterinarian. She figured it would be more effective at keeping Tom compliant. Rachel wasn't sure she wanted to go to anything stronger than Gravol and allergy medication.

Listlessly, Tom shifted around on the cot, trying to find a more comfortable position. He wasn't quite sure what was going on, all he knew for sure was that his back was on fire. Moving didn't seem to be helping much and he still couldn't open his eyes very well. He could feel the rough fabric of the cot under his stomach and thighs. Somehow that didn't make a lot of sense. His drug addled brain tried to come up with a logical explanation for what he was feeling but nothing came to mind. Then he was back under.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Rachel moved over to where the pill and a glass of water were sitting. That had been too close a call. She wasn't sure who Dianne was but it had been the third time the young man had called her name upon waking. It was probably the girl that left him on the grand stands.

Carelessly, Rachel rolled Tom onto his back so she could force the pill down his throat. His waking up and speaking had reminded her that Tom wasn't really hers to do with as she pleased. He was a person with a life that she'd taken him away from. Fear and panic played at the corners of her mind as Tom grimaced when his battered skin came in contact with the cot.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Rachel kept repeating as she lifted his sweaty head and placed the pill between his slack lips. Then she brought the glass up and poured water into his mouth. Tom sputtered as he inhaled some of the liquid but Rachel was gratified to see the pill disappear down his mouth.

Cursing under her breath, Rachel waited half an hour until she figured the pill had taken affect. She'd made her mind up. She wasn't going to let Tom go. She didn't want to go to prison and to put her family through the shame of others knowing what she'd done in her desperation.

Satisfied that the young man was unconscious, Rachel quickly slipped some clothes over his limbs and prepared to move him. He was going to a much more secure location. She'd remembered the perfect spot.

OOOOO

"Hi. What can I get you?" the bartender asked the two agents. She was a middle aged woman with dark hair and eyes. Reid concluded from her colouring that she was probably at least a quarter Native American in heritage. She was the only person in the bar at the moment besides themselves.

The lack of other patrons kind of surprised Hotch, with the hotel and other restaurants being so busy there should have been some other spill over to places such as this. He was too hungry to go someplace else though.

"We would like something for lunch," Hotch replied as he and Reid sat down on two of the bar stools along the dingy bar. "What are our options?"

"Well, we don't have much. How do cheese burgers and fries strike you?" the bartender replied. She was absently wiping the wooden counter top. Over her left shoulder, Hotch and Reid could see the small kitchen through an opening in the wall behind her.

"That would be good," Hotch stated. It wasn't really what he preferred to eat but beggars couldn't be choosers.

"Give me about five minutes and I'll have that ready for you. Could you let me know if anyone else comes in?" the woman asked as she headed for the kitchen.

"Sure," Hotch asked.

Reid had spent the time scanning the bar. It was a little on the dingy side. There was the bar, four booths along the far wall and a much used pool table at the other end of the room. There was a hallway with a red Exit sign burning above it and a washroom sign hanging beside it. The floor had at one time been covered in a nice carpet. Now, though, it was hard to pick out the design in the dim light and the layer of dirt that covered it.

The young genius finished his examination of the place with the bar. It had the wooden counter and a large mirrored wall behind it. Bottles and glasses sat on glass shelves. From the subtle layer of dust, Reid suspected that it had been a while since the Health Inspector had paid a visit. Distantly he hoped that neither of them became ill from eating here. As the woman turned to head into the kitchen, Reid noticed that her name plate had the name 'Mary' carefully printed on it.


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello!! Thank you all very much for your kind reviews. I'm so excited that so many people are enjoying this twisted story of mine. Well, it seemed awfully twisted when I came up with it sitting in the bleachers at a country music festival. Tee Hee._

_Anyway, I was wondering what you thought about another idea that's come to mind. I was going to have Aaron and Spencer kidnapped right away but decided to prolong the suspense. Well, for a chapter or two anyway, I have to see how it unfolds. But I have added two more characters in the bar, I've loosely based them on Dean and Sam Winchester from 'Supernatural'. They are still brothers but I was thinking about making them bounty hunters to keep it more reality based. No ghosts or ghouls here. (Unless you want there to be.) The question is: should I have Mary kidnap one or both of them before Aaron and/or Spencer? I have a tendency to get carried away with my stories and am wondering if I'm doing it again. PLEASE let me know your opinion!!!_

_Thanks,_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER FOUR

It had been easier than Rachel had expected. All she had to do was roll Tom into a blanket and then lift him over her shoulder and head up the stairs. Of course Rachel had waited until she was sure the neighbours had all gone to work and had pulled her SUV up beside the cellar door. She had no intention of getting caught with the young man nor did she plan to lose him. There was no future in Rachel's world, not any more. She lived in the here and now. Tomorrow would have to take care of itself.

Glancing in her rear view mirror, Rachel checked to make sure that young Tom was still unconscious and bundled up in the back of her vehicle. It wasn't a long trip, probably about an hour and a half but she'd made sure to dose the young man before they left. Distantly she wondered if anyone other than herself remembered the old cabin she spent hours in as a teenager. Well, Mary probably would but that couldn't be helped. So long as no one else put the cabin together with her, she should be able to keep Tom for as long as she wanted. The thought made Rachel happy. Humming quietly, she concentrated on her driving. The last thing she needed was to be stopped for speeding.

OOOOO

The deep fryer was bubbling beside her while Mary cooked the burger and fries for the two men sitting at her bar. In the polished metal of the hood she kept looking at the younger of the two men. He was just her type, tall, thin and dark haired. He was kind of geeky which also appealed to her. While she worked, Mary kept an eye on the place. She was hoping that no one else would come in. It would make what she had planned that much easier.

Just as she was about to break up two Valium into the mustard on the hamburger buns, two young men walked in. Damn, she swore mentally. That was the last thing she needed. Leaving the burgers to cook a little while longer, Mary stashed the two pills in her pocket, wiped her hands on her apron and headed out into the common area. Might as well see what they wanted.

"Good afternoon. What can I do for you today?" Mary asked. She deliberately ignored her other two patrons. She didn't want the lust in her eyes to show. If she had bothered to think about it, Mary might have become aware of the fact that the younger of the two men reminded her of her brothers. The same brothers that used to drive her nuts as a child and who used to try to play 'games' with her that always made her feel uncomfortable.

"A beer and a burger," the shorter of the two men stated. He had close cropped dark brown hair, medium blue eyes and a well maintained body. The other man had shaggy, chestnut brown hair, dark eyes and stood several inches taller than his compatriot.

"Do you have salads here?" the taller man asked. Mary barely managed to contain the laughter that threatened to overwhelm her. Who in their right mind went to a bar and ordered a salad?

"Um, no, I'm afraid our menu is restricted to a deep fryer and a grill. How about a burger and fries?" Mary said. She was drawn to these two men as well. She was really going to have to learn to school her emotions better. She couldn't have all of them after all.

The taller man grimaced slightly before nodding his head yes. Clearly burgers and fries were not at the top of his list of preferences for food. "That'll be fine."

"It'll be a few minutes. I hope you're not in a hurry," Mary said. She was trying to subtly push the men out the door. She still had the chance to take the younger man at the bar if these two left.

"That's fine. We're not in a hurry," the shorter man said.

"Okay. Coming right up." Mary turned from the two and went to the bar. She paused by the first two men at the bar.

"What would you like to drink?" Mary asked. Now that she knew the others were staying she had to shift back into the bartender mode, not the predator mode. It made her world shift a little under her feet.

"Coffee would be great," the thin, dark haired boy said, his face lighting up with a grin.

"We are looking for a young man. We understand he's of legal age to drink so I was wondering if you've seen him. His name is Matt de Pape," the older man said. While he talked he pulled an eight by ten glossy picture out of a file and slid it toward her. Out of habit, Hotch carefully watched the woman's face for any signs of recognition. There were none.

"No, I'm sorry. At night we're really busy so I don't pay much attention to the faces. It's up to the waitresses to ID anyone that might be underage, I'm too busy making the drinks," Mary stated. She flashed a smile before she picked up the coffee pot sitting on the counter behind her, filled two mugs up and slid them toward the men. "Do you need cream or sugar?"

"Black is fine," Aaron said as he inhaled the familiar aroma. The smell loosened the tight knot of tension that had sprouted between his eyes. The pain didn't lessen much but at least it no longer felt like his head was going to fall off.

Smiling at them again, Mary headed back into the kitchen. She was very careful to keep her face a pleasant mask until she was sure that none of the patrons could see her. So, Tom's name was really Matt and someone was looking for him. That complicated things.

While she worked on the men's food Mary tried to figure out who they were. They didn't look much like the police detectives she'd seen asking questions around town before. There was a quiet confidence emanating from both of the men. The thinner one also seemed to be socially awkward, something Mary knew Rachel could relate to.

The first order finished, Mary put it on the plates and then carried it out to the bar. She slid the plates in front of the two men. "You don't look like police. Are you private investigators?" she asked trying to keep her face as curious as possible.

"We work for the FBI," the younger man said before the older one shot him a look. Chastised, the younger man pulled his food toward him and began to eat in earnest. He suddenly realized just how hungry he really was.

"The FBI? I didn't think they handled missing persons," Mary stated as she put a bottle of ketchup in front of them. "If you will excuse me, I have to get back to my other order."

The food was surprisingly good. Aaron hadn't felt particularly hungry with the pounding of his head but after the first mouthful his appetite returned with a vengeance. He hadn't meant to shoot Reid a look, after all he'd simply told the truth. But there were times when you could say too much. Aaron had the feeling this was one of those times.

Silently, the two men concentrated on their food. The search could wait for an extra five minutes.

OOOOO

The place was better than Rachel had remembered. The cabin itself wasn't much to look at but it was what was underneath it that had always been her favourite part of it. Back when Rachel and Mary were teenagers they'd stumbled on this place while exploring the woods. It was old and dilapidated then from lack of attention. The two girls had spent hours trying to fix it up but neither of them had had much money but a lot of ingenuity had done wonders.

It was while they were working to fix the cabin up that Rachel had stumbled on the trap door. The hinges had been frozen with corrosion so it had taken some work to get it open. Underneath the two girls discovered a whole new world. Rachel figured it had been used during the prohibition era for smuggling booze or at least for storing it. She imagined it could have also been used for hiding slaves that were trying to make their way along the Underground Railroad. All of it seemed very romantic.

The trap door led to a hallway that had six rooms coming off of it. The rooms were small but each had a small, unobtrusive window that allowed sunlight to brighten the rooms during the day. At night the holes were so small that oil lamps were used didn't shine through. It was rather ingenious.

Each of the rooms had a bed dug out of the wall. Some were larger than others but it was clear that people had at one time slept in the rooms. Rachel and Mary had spent many hours fixing each of the rooms up. They all had a theme but not all of them were nice.

Rachel was glad of her SUV by the time she reached the cabin. A normal car would have a great deal of trouble navigating the streams and shrubs that dotted the area between the cabin and the road. A few times Rachel had been afraid that she'd injured Tom as he'd been send flying into the roof of the vehicle.

Grateful that they'd finally made it, Rachel undid her seat belt and climbed out of the cooling vehicle. She went to the cabin, opened the door and panned a flashlight inside. The cell below might be lighted during the day but the cabin certainly wasn't. Other people had used the cabin that much was obvious. Rachel could see that the fire place had been used by the shattered furniture that was scattered about. Clearly, no one had tried to stay for longer than a few hours.

A quick glance over her shoulder and Rachel moved inside. She wanted to get the trap door open and check the cells below before she hauled her treasure inside. Stepping over the debris littering the floor, Rachel found the trap door and pulled it open. At least she'd done a good job on the hinges because they moved without a sound even after all these years.

The ladder was a little rickety but Rachel made it to the bottom without incident. The place was a lot dustier and mustier than she remembered but otherwise had survived the years intact. Even the stuff they'd left in the rooms was still there. Flashes of her childhood played through Rachel's mind as she ran her hands over some of the items.

OOOOO

Matt's eyes flew open. He'd been dreaming unpleasant dreams. A woman had been touching him. The touches had been rough, angry not full of love and tenderness as Matt as used to. It had hurt and burned and left him feeling dirty and ashamed. His body had reacted to the stimulation while his mind tried to climb into a deep, dark hole. He really hoped it had all been just that, a dream. Then he'd opened his eyes and found that he was wrapped in a blanket.

It took a few minutes for Matt to decide that he was no longer at the music festival. He could tell that he was in a vehicle that he could have been sleeping in but the world around him was too quiet. All he heard was birds chirping and wind rustling tree leaves. The festival had been in the middle of a farmer's field. Something was really wrong here.

Groaning as his stiffened muscles complained, Matt pulled the blanket off his head and tried gingerly to sit up. He managed to get high enough that he could see out the vehicle windows but not so high that he smacked his head. Beyond the glass he saw trees, bushes and more trees. In front of the unfamiliar SUV was a ramshackle cabin. Another groan escaped as Matt tried to get the hatch door open only to discover that apparently the manufacturers hadn't intended it to be opened from the inside. That was quite an oversight.

Steeling himself, Matt got out from under the blanket and tried to clamber over the back seat of the SUV. He needed to get out of the thing and gone before whoever had put him here came back. Even though Matt's mind still wasn't working all that well, he did know that much. Breath whooshed out of his lungs as he landed wrong in the back seat. His body wasn't reacting to what he was telling it to do. Oh it was trying but it just wasn't up to par.

His right hand wasn't working very well but Matt managed to get the side door of the vehicle open. He ungraciously tumbled out into the grass and ground cover below. For some reason the cabin was giving him the willies. Going in that direction seemed like a very bad idea. With a great deal of effort, Matt got up onto his feet. He had to lean against the side of the SUV to keep upright on his trembling legs.

What the hell had he been drinking? Matt wondered. It was like the worst hangover he could ever remember having times ten. His legs, arms and torso were completely uncoordinated and weak. His head felt like it was full of cotton balls and his mind was still all fuzzy.

The ground was very uneven. Matt was having a hell of time trying to stay on his feet as he took several steps away from the vehicle. Well, it seemed the world was uneven or maybe his legs were suddenly different lengths, it was hard to tell. Behind him, Matt heard the cabin door swing open on rusty hinges. Fear spiked through his system. He didn't want to be touched like that ever again even if it meant falling down and breaking his neck in the process.

"Tom! Where are you going?" a female voice called out. It wasn't the same voice from his dream. The dreaded voice that called Matt all kinds of vicious, vile names while blows landed on his body. But it didn't matter, Matt had no intention of begin taken prisoner again.

A tree root caught Matt's foot and sent him sprawling in the dirt. Pain flashed through his leg while he felt a sharp, tearing between his ankle and knee. Gasping, Matt tried to regain his feet only to wind up sprawled in the dirt again. His leg wouldn't take his weight.

"Tom, what are you doing?" the female voice asked. She was close, too close. Frantic, Matt tried to keep moving forward using his hands alone. He didn't have the strength to look over his shoulder so all Matt saw was the dirt in front of his face and the plant life he was using as hand holds.

"Get away from me," Matt tried to beg but all that came out was a jumble of sounds. His body was betraying him yet again.

"You'll catch your death out here. Look what you've done to your leg, it's all ready beginning to swell." Gentle hands caught hold of Matt and rolled him onto his back. The face of the woman who'd helped him down the bleachers came into his view.

"Please, just let me go," Matt tried to say. Again his mouth didn't work well enough to say the words. What the hell was wrong with him?

"Come on, let's get you someplace safe. There are wolves and bears in these woods," the woman said. Effortlessly, she pulled a struggling Matt to his feet and pulled him over her shoulder. Then all Matt saw was the woman's back as he was carried toward the cabin. Despair tried to overwhelm him. Matt just wanted to go home. Home suddenly seemed so very far away.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hi. I'm feeling inspired and so managed to get this chapter out quickly. Thank you to Mey and stoneagequeen and everyone else for their reviews. I know there was a glitch in Fanfiction when I posed my question but these were the only two responses I got. I decided to go ahead and add 'Dave' and 'Jared' who are based on Dean and Sam Winchester for CW's 'Supernatural'. I don't own them or plan to make money off them. I couldn't resist borrowing them, that's all. I hope you enjoy the new chapter. PLEASE review if you see something you like or something you dislike! I'm always willing to listen to constructive criticism._

_Have a great day!!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER FIVE

The two FBI agents had eaten their meals and were preparing to leave. The older of the two, she thought his name was Aaron Hotchner, was pulling a credit card out of his wallet. Mary stepped forward and placed her hand on top of his, stopping the motion.

"Your money is no good here. If you're trying to find that boy it's the least I can do to help," Mary said, an easy smile crossing her face. She was so good at pretending to be someone she was not. It was an ability that both women had mastered through hours of role playing games they used to play as children.

"That's really not necessary," Aaron said. He glanced around at the few other patrons in the place. The woman really couldn't afford to lose the money. He appreciated the sentiment, however. The headache eased up just a fraction.

"No, I insist. The daytime is always slow around here but come evening we are usually packed solid. I just want to help," Mary stated. She looked at the two brothers. They too were just finishing their meals. The smaller of the two men was looking around as if gauging the other customers. His eyes lingered on all the females. The very act sent her hackles rising.

"Stop in any time we're open for a meal. It's on the house. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to get back to my other customers," Mary said. With a nod at the two men, she headed over to the nearest small clump of people. Her workers would be showing up in the next half hour, before things got too busy for her to handle on her own. Then she could get away for a little while. Maybe go visit Matt and Rachel. The thought cheered her up considerably.

"Thank you," Aaron said as he and Reid took their leave. Suddenly the bar didn't seem so dark and dingy. At least the food had been very good. Now that his stomach was full, Aaron had more energy and was better prepared to head off to the girlfriend's house again.

"Do you want me to drive?" Spencer asked. He knew Aaron had a headache. He'd seen the older man pop a few Tylenol every four hours and it didn't seem to be helping. Briefly he wondered if he should be calling Rossi. The older man was as close to a peer that Aaron had in the Unit. When he wouldn't listen to Reid, he'd listen to Rossi. They weren't on an official investigation, though, and bothering Rossi on his weekend off just didn't seem necessary.

"No," was Aaron's automatic response. Then the ground seemed to move under his feet, causing Aaron to stumble slightly. He didn't fall or even come close but the incident told Aaron just how bad his headache really was. Sighing, he pulled the keys out of his pocket and handed them over to his younger compatriot. They still had a lot to accomplish before they could go back to the hotel. "No speeding."

OOOOO

Rachel settled Tom into the most comfortable of the rooms. She shied away from the other ones. When the two of them had decorated them Rachel had been in a very dark and dangerous place. She'd since moved on from there but she had the feeling that Mary had become stuck. She desperately wanted to clear the rooms out and burn the items inside but she knew that when Mary found out she would be in a great deal of trouble.

The drugs were pulling Tom back down again. He struggled weakly to get off the bed and get away from Rachel but he really didn't accomplish much. Rachel ignored the blows he tried to rain down on her head and torso because they didn't hurt. As gently as she could in Tom's agitated state, Rachel forced Tom back onto the bed. He was mumbling incoherently and trembling like a leaf. She felt sorry for him but she still wasn't ready to let him go.

"Calm down, calm down. You're safe right now," Rachel cooed as she kept her hold on him. The drugs really did work to keep him manageable but she hated having to use them. What she wouldn't give to have a real conversation with the boy. Well, the moment she slipped him the Gravol that became impossible. She was his keeper, not his friend. She had to remember that.

Worn out and losing his fight against the drugs, Tom settled back with a deep sigh. He looked up with blurry eyes at the woman hovering over him. Despite everything, she still didn't give him the creeps. He wasn't quite sure why. Then darkness descended.

Tom sank into the bed unconscious. Rachel smiled. This was more like it. During his brief flight Tom had gotten pretty dirty from rolling around in the forest. Rachel left him long enough to pump water out of the hand pump tap down the hallway and then heating it on a propane stove she'd set up in the next room. The last thing she wanted was to make him sicker than he all ready appeared to be.

Heading back into the room with a basin of water, Rachel set it down on a small table. She carefully stripped off his shirt and pants and began washing off the soil. While she worked she looked at Tom's swollen ankle and the welts on his back. The last thing she wanted was for an infection to set in. Humming off key, Rachel smiled.

OOOOO

"Well, that was a waste of time," Reid stated as the two men slid back into their vehicle. Aaron was letting him drive again.

"Not entirely, at least we have some more names to follow up on," Aaron responded. He had his right elbow sitting on the edge of the door, his second and third fingers of that hand were pinching the bridge of his nose and his eyes were closed. Where the hell was this kid? This should have been a simple search and find. It wasn't like someone kidnapped him at the spur of the moment. That just wasn't how these things usually went down.

Kidnappings or abductions usually took a great deal of planning. It also involved the abductor knowing the abductees, at least usually. It wasn't always the case but the majority of them followed a specific pattern. So far this one had fallen off the map a long time ago. Aaron's headache was back with a vengeance. Maybe another cup of coffee would help.

"Before we hit the next address, is there a coffee shop or convenience store we can stop at?" Reid suggested. He didn't really need a cup of coffee but he knew it sometimes helped with Aaron's headaches. Sometimes.

"I think there's one four streets over," Aaron said, his eyes still closed. He'd take two more Tylenol. It wasn't quite time but he didn't care. It wasn't like he could die of an overdose of four Tylenol. Besides, it was worth a try.

"All right," Reid said as he shoulder checked and pulled out into the street. It was a completely different experience driving here than in Quantico. He could almost get used to it. Well, on second thought he wouldn't go that far.

OOOOO

The two brothers were still in the bar. Mary had been busy but every time she'd bothered to look over at them she saw that the smaller of the two was busy hustling pool and women. He couldn't seem to choose between the two. The taller of the brothers was sitting quietly at the corner table, a laptop open in front of him and running. This intrigued Mary.

Casually Mary made her way toward the dark haired man. He was so engrossed on what he was looking at on the screen that he didn't immediately notice her hovering over his shoulder. She got a chance to see what was there, half expecting porno or something else deviant that would hold his attention so well. She was somewhat surprised to find that it was a website similar to "America's Most Wanted".

"Hi. Are you ready for another beer?" Mary asked. The young man jumped and then turned toward her, an almost shy smile playing across his lips.

"Ah, no thanks. I'm just waiting for my brother," the young man replied. He smiled at her fully now. He seemed like a genuinely nice guy, unlike his lecherous brother.

"I think he's going to be busy for a while. Do you need to plug that thing in?" Mary asked. She'd noticed that he was using a WiFi stick and battery life while he worked. "There's unsecured WiFi blanketing the entire downtown. You don't need that thing."

"Yeah, I noticed the unsecured net but didn't want to intrude. Is it free?" the boy asked. He reached into a bag sitting on the seat beside him and pulled the plug in for his computer out. "Are you sure it's okay to plug this in? My battery is just about dead."

"Yes, it's free. It's a gimmick to get visitors to spend time in the downtown," Mary replied, a smile on her face. "The nearest plug in is under the table by the kitchen door. Feel free to use it. I pay the bills around here and the power you'll use won't add up to much.

"What is it you do, exactly?" Mary asked. She wasn't ready to let this conversation die. He was very attractive. And a little geeky. Just the way she liked them.

"We're bounty hunters. We specialize in pedophiles and other scum of the earth," the young man replied. "We just located and turned in a man wanted in six cases of sexual assault on minors. David is celebrating."

"That's great. Why is he the only one who gets to celebrate?" Mary asked.

"I'm not much into the way he celebrates," the young man admitted. Mary was charmed to see a subtle blush color his cheeks. "Besides, we need to find our next gig."

"Well, good luck with that. If you need anything just let us know," Mary said. Then she was headed back to the bar. The gears were grinding in her mind. She'd called Rachel and not gotten an answer. She wondered if the young woman had moved Tom yet. It was what she expected her to do. Rachel really was too damned predictable. At least when you knew her as well as Mary did, anyway. Rachel was as taken in by a pretty face as she was. They just wanted them for different purposes.

The evening passed quickly. Mary was too busy to take a break and go looking for Rachel and Matt. That was okay though, she had a pretty good idea where she would go. Like she said, Rachel was nothing if not predictable. She spent her time serving customers, making sure her employees kept things under control and watching the brothers. Dave was still trying to romance the women, any woman. The younger brother spent his time on the computer, occasionally glancing up at his brother.

While Mary was wiping glasses to remove water spots she watched the latest interaction between the men. Dave had finally gotten lucky with one of the local tramps. Mary didn't bother to tell him that the woman was well known around town. Even she deserved to get lucky once in a while. The younger brother began packing up his computer. Mary doubted that he was going to go back to wherever it was that they slept because she knew the woman lived at home with her parents. No boys allowed.

The younger brother came up to the bar and stood in front of Mary. "Hi. I need to pay our tab before I go," he stated.

"Sure, no problem. Where are you going? It looks like your brother is going to be hanging around for a while longer," Mary stated. Things had slowed down enough now. She could leave if she needed to.

"Yeah, well, I'm ready for a walk. We'll meet up later. How much do I owe you?" He carefully placed his laptop bag on the bar so he could dig in his back pocket to get at his wallet.

"That'll be sixty five dollars and twenty three cents," Mary replied. Dave had been drinking pretty heavy but the younger brother had been drinking water and coffee. She'd thrown the coffee in for free. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Jared," the young man answered as he counted out seventy dollars. "Keep the change."

Mary watched as Jared stopped by his brother's booth and spoke to him for a few moments before heading out the door. She shouldn't. She was all ready having fun with Matt, another one would just complicate matters. The only benefit was that she wouldn't have to wait for Matt to heal all the time if she had more than one to play with. The thought was appealing.

The decision made, Mary motioned to her supervisor that she was headed out back. Usually that meant she was going for a smoke because she wasn't allowed to smoke in the building if she was cooking, which she usually was. This time, however, there were other things on her mind.

Palming her car keys, Mary slipped out the back and into her vehicle. The streets at this time of night were pretty deserted, despite it being a Saturday. As much as Mary liked to think otherwise, her bar really wasn't on the list of hot spots in town. Today that was okay with her. She turned the engine over and headed out. She'd have to wait for the perfect moment or else she was going to get caught, something Mary didn't plan to happen.

OOOOO

The rest of the names had come up empty. No one had seen Matt leave the grand stands, no one had seen him leave the grounds. Hotch's headache hadn't responded to the extra dose of pain killer. Supper wasn't sitting well either. He'd let Reid drive for the rest of the day but they still didn't accomplish much. Frustration just made the muscles in his head and neck tighter.

"Maybe we should head back to the hotel room. It's getting too late to interview people anyway," Reid suggested. They'd reached the end of their list of names but a few other thoughts had occurred to him during the silent drive. He was going to have to wait until morning to pursue the possibilities though. Beside him, Reid heard Hotch breath another sigh. It might be time for the Unit Chief to go to a doctor to get something stronger for his headaches.

"That's probably a good idea. We can get an early start in the morning," Hotch agreed. Sleep wasn't likely to come but if it did it would give him some relief and maybe even help. Besides, Reid was right, it was almost midnight. They'd run out of time today.

Reid didn't even have to turn the vehicle around. That was the direction he'd all ready chosen to go in. If Hotch hadn't agreed he'd been quite prepared to argue the point.

Pulling up in front of the hotel, Reid followed Aaron inside and toward their room. He wasn't really tired. He supposed he'd had a few too many cups of coffee. He was going to have to start watching his caffeine intake before it became a problem. Reid sat on his bed, picked up the remote and absently flipped through the stations. There was absolutely nothing on. Aaron had gone into the bathroom. Reid could hear water running but he didn't think his boss was taking a shower. He seemed to prefer morning showers, same as Reid.

Suddenly full of nervous energy, Reid began to pace around the room. There was very little there to hold his attention. By the time Aaron exited the bathroom Reid was ready to blast off into orbit. "I think I'm going to go for a walk. I'll be back in about half an hour," Reid said as he pocketed his room key.

"It's midnight, Reid," Aaron stated, his voice sounding beyond tired. He was all ready dressed in his pyjamas. Reid had to stifle a smile. Even when ready for bed Aaron looked like he was wearing a suit.

"I know, I know. I won't be long, I promise," Reid stated as he slipped his jacket on, the night was getting cool. Satisfied that there were no more questions, Reid headed out the door.

OOOOO

The streets were quiet, just the way Jared liked them. That was the beauty of going for walks late at night in these small towns. It was almost as if he was alone in the universe. Something Jared occasionally longed for. He loved his brother Dave but the man really could get annoying, especially when he was chasing women. It was like he'd never grown up. There were many a time when Jared felt like he was the older of the two.

His hands in the pockets of his jean jacket, Jared walked wherever his feet took him. The town was small enough that he wasn't worried about getting lost. He just wanted to keep moving for a while. Dave loved to run, Jared loved to walk. Just another way the brothers were complete opposites.

Deep in thought, Jared didn't hear the car pacing him the next street over. He didn't expect trouble. Their latest bounty was all ready in jail. The cheque was in the mail. He'd been a loner so Jared didn't have any vengeful friends to worry about. He wasn't even really aware that he was in a back alley behind some darkened stores. All that mattered was putting one foot in front of the other.

Coming to the end of the alley, Jared turned right. The next street over was just as quiet with the silent store fronts. He happened to notice another person walking in the opposite direction. He didn't bother to look up. If it was something to worry about Jared knew he could handle himself.

Up ahead by nearly half a block was another alley. It ran across the street Jared was walking on. In the street lights, Jared looked up and realized he did know that guy coming from the other direction. He'd been in the bar when he and Dave had arrived. He thought briefly about acknowledging the man when they grew adjacent to each other but never got a chance to.

It was sheer luck on Mary's part. She couldn't believe it. Both of them. On the same street at night with no one around. It must be fate. She'd seen the direction Jared had headed in and had cut through the alley. She was waiting in the darkness between the buildings, her headlights turned off and the engine quietly idling. The FBI agent had seemed like a pipe dream. She'd wanted him but never figured she'd get him alone, without his partner.

Mary waited patiently. She could hear young Jared's shuffling gait over her car. She knew he was getting close. It was going to be difficult getting them both but she had to try. The chance as never going to come around again and she wasn't willing to leave witnesses.

Just as Jared stepped out in front of Mary's car, she gunned the engine and slipped the clutch. The vehicle shot forward, striking Jared hard enough to throw him over the hood, windshield and roof but with any luck not so hard as to break his legs. That wouldn't be as much fun. Still gunning the engine, Mary sent her car careening toward Reid. The young fed had stopped in his tracks, shocked by what he'd just witnessed. He was easy prey. Grinning, Mary struck him as well just as Reid seemed to come back to himself and tried to jump out of the way. He was too late.


	6. Chapter 6

_Wow!! I'm absolutely floored by the response to this story! I can't thank you all enough for your wonderful reviews. I'm very happy to find out that I'm not the only one enjoying this. ;) Here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it just as much._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER SIX

"Bonus!" Mary purred as she watched the young FBI agent slide down the hood of her car. She'd never struck anyone with her car before. She wasn't sure if she'd hit him too hard or the other boy for that matter but she was about to find out. As she watched, Reid slid to the ground in front of her car, stunned or unconscious.

Smiling, Mary stepped out of her car, leaving it running because she didn't intend to stay here any longer than necessary. Making her way to the front of the vehicle, she gazed down at the long, thin limbs all akimbo on the ground. Reid's eyes were closed and blood flowed from a deep gash in his hairline. Excitement thrummed through Mary's body as she bent down and picked the thin boy up. This was just too perfect.

Spencer was unconscious. His head lulled on his neck. Blood was dripping from a cut on the side of his head. As Mary hoisted him up, a groan escaped his lips. But there wasn't really anything else that she could see that was wrong with him. What was the fun in that?

Popping the trunk, Mary dumped the boy unceremoniously inside. She wasn't going to have to worry about him for a little while. Then she went over to where Jared was sprawled on the ground. He was bigger and heavier than Spencer and was going to be more of a problem. He too appeared to be unconscious. Bending down, Mary caught hold of his arms and began pulling him toward the trunk. She needed to get them secured quickly and someplace less visible.

Jared was far too tall and too heavy but Mary was determined. She pulled on his arms, even when she felt his shoulder grind. His nose was bleeding and there were rips in his shirt. Mary thought she saw some blood seeping from under the fabric but she couldn't be bothered to check. If it wasn't spurting out, indicating an artery was severed, he would survive until she had a chance to examine him thoroughly. Jared groaned as she pulled him across the cement to the open trunk.

It took some doing but eventually she got both Reid and Jared crammed into the trunk of her car. For not the first time Mary wished she'd bought a larger vehicle, like an SUV. Imagine the fun she could have with that! Still grinning, Mary climbed back behind the wheel and set off. She needed to get back to work before anyone became suspicious.

On her way back to the bar, Mary parked in a deserted mall parking lot in the darkest corner she could find. Going back to the trunk, she had to push Reid out of the way so she could reach what she needed. Under her hands the young boy groaned as she pushed. The sound sent a thrill through her.

After all these years it was so nice to hear someone else in pain. It was so nice to be the one causing it, not the one experiencing it. If only Rachel would let go of her ridiculous belief that hurting these boys was bad. Then they'd really have fun together. Well, after she saw these two she just might give in.

There wasn't much room left in the trunk with the two unconscious men inside but Mary was still able to locate the bungee cords she needed. She used these to tie both men's hands and feet. Then she stuffed rags into their mouths. If they happened to come to while she was at work she didn't want them to be able to get away. That would ruin all her plans.

In the dim light of the trunk light, Mary gazed down on her new toys. Reid looked like an angel despite the blood drying on the side of his face. His mouth was slightly open while he slept and his too long hair hung across his face making him look younger than he was. Jared's face was turned away from her but she knew he would look about the same. Both of them were beautiful and vulnerable. Just the way she liked them.

Mary closed the trunk. She left her hand on the cool steel for a few moments, thoughts of what she planned to do with these two played through her mind. For a second she considered not going back to work, to heading out to Rachel's house and showing off what she'd found. That would be so easy. It would also be out of character for her. Mary was a micromanager. She had to be in control of everything that happened at the bar. If she hoped to get away with this for any length of time she had to do everything the way she usually did. Sighing, she climbed back behind the wheel and headed toward work. Play could wait.

OOOOO

Tom was as clean as Rachel was going to be able to get him. At some point she may have to consider letting him wake up enough to take a shower. Sponge baths were only so effective. Idly, Rachel ran her fingers over the welts on Tom's back. In the process of bathing him she'd had to roll him onto his stomach. She'd left his boxers on because she still wasn't ready to go that far with him. Mary seemed to enjoy playing with him in that way. Rachel knew all too well how awful it felt to be touched against one's will. She could never do that to another human being.

With practiced ease, Rachel checked Tom's life signs. She wanted to make sure he was down for the count, she was going to have to go back home to get a few more things. The one thing she had going for her was the fact that she'd taken this week off work. The plan had been to head to the nearest park and spend the time camping. It was an excuse to get away from everyone for a while. Well, she wasn't going to get away from everyone but that was okay.

Satisfied that Tom was going to stay unconscious, Rachel ran her hand through Tom's close cropped hair and relished the sensation. Well, there were probably enough supplies to last until tomorrow. Maybe she could just curl up here beside Tom for the night. The thought was very tempting. Rachel continued to run her hand through Tom's hair and then she made her way to the back of his neck. Tom moaned and shifted weakly. That brought her back to herself. Shaking her head, Rachel stood up quickly and left the room. She wasn't going to become another Mary.

OOOOO

The lights in the bar seemed that much brighter. The people seemed that much louder and happier. Of maybe it had to do with the two men Mary had locked in her trunk. The excitement and anticipation continued to flow through her. It took every ounce of will power she possessed to keep from giggling in delight. The only problem was that time seemed to have stopped. She couldn't wait for last call so she could go be with her young men.

Mary took particular delight in watching Dave. The older brother was still at the bar, trying to find a woman that would take him home. So far he hadn't had any luck. Even the town slut had turned him down. Then a thought occurred to Mary. If Dave went home at last call as seemed to be likely, he'd discover Jared's disappearance far too soon. That wouldn't do. She scanned the patrons, trying to find one that would work.

It didn't take very long. The town slut was still in the building. No, that was too obvious. Mary settled on one of her lone female patrons. She knew Chris was having marital problems. Her relationship with her husband was off again, on again. From the looks of her tonight their relationship was off again. Not for the first time, Mary mixed up a free drink for the woman. She genuinely felt sorry for her and had given her free drinks before. This would not be out of character. While Mary mixed the drink below the level of the bar, she slipped a little something extra in the beverage. Chris was going to have a fun night.

Sliding the drink toward the woman, Mary smiled at her when she accepted it without a word. The gods really were smiling at her. Mary had timed it perfectly. Dave just happened to come up to the bar, looking for another beer.

"I just have to go back to the cooler. I've run out of that brand up here," Mary said, smiling at the young man. He smiled back and nodded his understanding. While he waited, Dave turned to scan the crowds again. It had been a long hunt. He really needed the release but it didn't look like it was going to happen tonight. Oh, well, wouldn't be the first time.

In the back room, by the cooler, Mary popped the lid on the beer bottle. She popped a pill in it before heading back to the front of the bar. This was just too perfect. Somehow she didn't think the makers of the little blue pill had planned on it being used for this purpose. Well, she was well known for her imagination. Smiling, she handed the cold beer over to Dave. This was just too easy.

OOOOO

The first thing Reid became aware of was the pain burning through his right side. It took a few moments to remember exactly what had transpired. He'd been trying to get out of the way. He'd almost made it when the car crashed into his right side. That explained the pain. Moaning softly, Reid tried to move so he could get a little more comfortable. It was then he realized he was bound and gagged. This couldn't be good.

Even in the dark Reid could tell that he was in a tight, confined place. His knees were bent nearly up to his chest. That only made things worse. He was having trouble breathing. His ribs on the right side and his right hip were the focal points of the pain. He didn't think they were broken but they were definitely badly bruised. He had a pounding headache that came from the right side of his head. It was making it difficult to think clearly.

Something moved beside him, nearly causing Reid to jump out of his skin. He wasn't alone. Damn. He hoped it wasn't Hotch. If he had any chance of getting out of this it was if Hotch was still free. Otherwise he was in bigger trouble than he imagined.

The person beside Reid moaned quietly as he tried to shift as well. Unintentionally, the person pressed against Reid's side. New pain blossomed. His breathing got significantly worse. In the darkness red lights flashed before his eyes. Reid didn't even have a chance to react before he slipped into unconsciousness.

As much as Jared hated to admit it, this wasn't the first time he'd woken up in the trunk of a car. It was, of course, the first time he'd been bound and gagged which complicated matters. He could feel someone behind him. His fingers were wound up in the fabric of the person's clothes. He desperately hoped it wasn't Dave.

Fear and pain spiked through him. Jared needed to straighten out his body. His upper and lower leg was on fire. So was his shoulder. But there wasn't enough room. Frustrated, Jared tried to kick at the wall of the car. He might be able to get someone's attention. All he managed to do was send more pain through his leg. Another groan escaped and was muffled by the gag. He tried again, determined to get the hell out of here. His leg was positioned wrong but he couldn't tell in the dark. When it made contact with the metal it felt like a blazing hot spike had been rammed through it. Darkness descended.

OOOOO

It had taken longer than Rachel had planned to get home. The trail she'd followed to the cabin had looked different in the dark. She hated to admit that she got lost once or twice. Pulling up behind her house, Rachel slipped inside. She didn't want the neighbours to see her. She'd told them that she was going camping. She just hoped they hadn't noticed that her camping stuff was still in the garage.

In the dark Rachel knew her way around. She found her camping gear and got her kerosene lamp and other things she was going to need to rough it out at the cabin. That deposited in her SUV, Rachel went into the house and began packing more food. She had to make sure Tom ate. Otherwise he wasn't going to last long.

Just as Rachel passed by her front door, the lights still turned off, she was startled by a quiet knocking on the wood. She knew who was there even before she looked. Only Mary would be at her door after two am when the lights were out. Sighing, Rachel moved to the door and opened it.

"What are you doing?" Mary demanded in a quiet voice as she slipped inside. She'd parked down the street. She didn't want the neighbours placing her at Rachel's door.

"I was packing to go camping," Rachel hedged. She really did hate the way the older woman talked down to her. Rachel was the one with the University education but she still felt like Mary was in charge.

Mary ignored the statement and headed for the cellar. She wanted to check on Matt before she brought the others in. She wasn't sure how she was going to work this but she lived in an apartment, she couldn't take them home with her.

"He's not there," Rachel stated. She waited for the explosion she knew would come.

"What do you mean?" Mary said as she rounded on the younger woman. They were about the same height and Rachel had several pounds on her but she knew how to intimidate Rachel.

"I moved him. Up to the cabin," Rachel admitted.

A slow smile spread across Mary's face. "That's absolutely perfect!"

OOOOO

Waking with a start, Aaron sat up and looked around the hotel room. His eyes weren't working very well, partly from being in a deep sleep interrupted by vivid nightmares. The other part was from the headache that wouldn't go away. Moaning softly, Aaron glanced over at Spencer's bed. In his semi lucid state, he could have sworn he saw his young associate asleep on the mattress.

Still exhausted, Hotch rolled back over onto his side, his back to Spencer's bed and instantly fell back asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

_Hi! Thank you very much for reading this story. I would love to hear what you think about where I'm going with this so PLEASE review!!_

_Just so you know I find I'm kind of shying away from describing what Mary is doing to these poor guys. Do you really want to know or should I keep dealing with the after effects by having Rachel treat them? What do you think?_

_This chapter is shorter but I'm hoping it helps to answer some questions. _

_Enjoy!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER SEVEN

The trip back to the cabin took less time but was more stressful for Rachel. Mary followed behind her in her own car until they reached the area where she was going to have to leave the road. Pulling up, she waited for the older woman to pull up behind her. Mary had been very mysterious since Rachel had let her into her house. Something was up and Rachel had the feeling she wasn't going to like it.

"Okay. What's going on?" Rachel asked as she stepped out of her SUV and walked toward Mary.

"I have a surprise for you," Mary said, a sly grin on her face. She moved to the back of her car. Her two young men had stayed quiet so far but she wasn't sure how much longer that would last.

"You know I hate surprises," Rachel sighed. Reluctantly she followed Mary. "Oh my God."

Mary had popped the trunk. Rachel felt her knees go weak upon seeing the two young men crammed into the tight space.

"What the hell are you thinking?" Rachel demanded as she turned to face the older woman. Still looking very satisfied with herself, Mary pulled a zip lock bag out of her pocket. In the dim light Rachel recognized the larger of the pills immediately. It was the other ones, the smaller ones that she wasn't too sure of. Mary pulled two of the valium out of the bag and proceeded to force them between the boys' lips.

"What are those for?" Rachel said as she caught hold of the bag so she could look more closely at the contents. Mary snatched it back.

"Well, little Matt doesn't like to play. I figure if I give him one of these little babies he won't be able to say no," Mary stated. The smile on her face chilled Rachel to the bone. She'd created a monster.

"Where the hell did you get those and who the hell is Matt?" Rachel said. She kept staring at the two men. They looked so young and vulnerable. For a few moments Rachel thought she was going to be violently ill.

"I stole them from my brother's medicine cabinet yesterday and Matt is our boy up at the cabin," Mary stated. She'd thought it was a stroke of genius stealing the Viagra to stimulate little Matt in a way that she didn't appear to be able to. It was frustrated. Nothing she did caused a reaction from the young man. The valium might have something to do with it but she didn't give up easily. Now she had even more guinea pigs to try to drug on.

"Why are you calling Tom Matt? Aren't you going to run out of valium soon?" Rachel asked. She felt like her head the spinning. This was getting really out of control. At the mention of Mary's brother images from Rachel's childhood percolated to the front of her mind. Angrily she forced the hated memories away. She didn't need to be dealing with that now too.

"This young man is an FBI agent. He was looking for your Tom in my bar this afternoon. His real name is Matt dePape," Mary said. She enjoyed knowing things the younger woman didn't. Rachel had a university education, even if it hadn't helped her much, while Mary had worked hard for everything she had. Rachel liked to play doctor but the only training she had was on animals. Well, at least it had proved useful so far.

Swallowing quickly, Rachel fought a short war in her own mind. The moral part of her wanted to knock Mary upside the head and run away with the two men to the nearest police station. The lonely, desperate part of her wasn't ready to let Matt go quite yet. These two other men were beyond her ability to consider at the moment.

"Fine, let's get them into the SUV," Rachel stated feeling very defeated. She's started this. She was going to have to see it through to the end. At the very least she needed to stay involved just to keep Mary from doing any permanent damage to the young men.

"Oh, don't go all holier than thou on me. You get off taking care of young Matt after I'm done with him. Admit it," Mary said as she reached in and caught hold of Jared's shoulders. Not dignifying that with a response, probably because it was true, Rachel silently took hold of the man's feet. All she really wanted to do was to go home, climb into bed and wake up in the morning with this all being a dream.

OOOOO

By the time they got the two men loaded up into Rachel's SUV and made their way to the cabin the sun was beginning to rise in the east. Both women were exhausted by the time they hauled Reid and Jared into the tunnels below the cabin. Rachel made as if to put Reid in one of the nicer rooms but Mary vetoed the decision. She chose one of the two rooms Rachel preferred to not go into. With her heart in her throat, Rachel also helped put Jared into the other room that she hated.

"I'm going to give Tom some water and then I'm going to sleep for a while," Rachel said as she quickly left the room. She didn't want to know what Mary had planned for the boys. She knew she'd find out soon enough when she went to clean them up.

"Yeah, you do that," Mary said dismissively. She was trying to decide which of her new toys to break in first.

OOOOO

A strange noise brought Aaron out of a deep sleep. It took a few moments for him to realize that the sound had come from him. Shaking his head, he rolled toward Spencer's bed. The room was dimly lit by sunlight peeking in around the pulled blind over the window. In that light, after blinking several times to get his eyes focussing again, Aaron looked closer. Fear spike through his system, jostling his headache into awareness again.

What Aaron had assumed in the night to be his young colleague was in fact his go bag and his messenger bag lying across the center of the bed. Sitting up, ignoring the dizziness and nausea that tried to assail him, Aaron turned his attention to the bathroom door. Maybe Spencer had woken early and was getting ready for the day. The door stood open with a dark room behind it.

"Spencer?" Aaron called out, not really believing what his mind was trying to tell him. Something was very wrong. Silence was the only response.

A moan slipped out between Aaron's clenched teeth. The nausea was getting worse. It would no longer be ignored. Throwing the blankets off, Aaron stumbled to the bathroom and was promptly violently ill. It seemed to last forever. By the time his body had emptied everything out of his stomach, Aaron had slumped on the cool bathroom tile, his limbs shaking with fatigue. His abdominal muscles were clenched tight but there was nothing left to come up.

The BAU Unit Chief was reduced to crawling out of the bathroom, to his bed and his clothes sitting folded on the chair. He had to reach his cell phone. He knew he was in trouble. This was more than just a tension headache. He knew he needed to get himself to a doctor but fear for Spencer became paramount in his mind.

Finally reaching the cell phone, Aaron slumped down on the cheap hotel carpet and stared at the brightly lit face with blurry eyes. Luckily he didn't have to remember the number he wanted to dial, it was on speed dial. Punching the number, Aaron waited while the line rang.

"Hello?" he heard the reassuring voice of Dave Rossi say sleepily into the other end.

"It's Aaron. I need help. I think Reid is missing and I'm ill," Aaron said. It pained him to admit that things had gotten so bad under his watch. As quickly as he could, he filled Rossi in on the details of where he was and what he and Reid were doing there to begin with. The nausea was returning.

"I'll be there as soon as I can, Aaron. You call 911 and get an ambulance to pick you up. You need to get to the hospital so doctors can start treating you. You're of no use to Spencer or yourself in this shape," Rossi said. He was all ready dressed and was picking up the second go bag he left packed at home. He wasn't always at work with an emergency came up. Mentally he was running through were the other members of the unit were for the weekend. None of them were close enough to Quantico or Aaron to be of assistance. Damn.

"I'm fine," was the automatic response. Even though Aaron was all ready dragging his protesting body back toward the bathroom. There may be nothing left in his stomach but he refused to throw up anywhere but the toilet. He didn't want to leave a mess for the maids when they came in. If Aaron had been a full capacity he would have known just how skewed his thought processes were by that single thought.

"I'm an hour and a half away, Aaron. You need to get to a doctor before that. I need to know that you're being taken care of so I can concentrate on finding Reid and this missing boy," Rossi tried to reason with his superior. He could tell from how Aaron was subtly slurring his words and the way he was speaking that something was very wrong. Fear gnawed at his mind and stomach as he sped down the stairs in his apartment building to get to the underground garage. He couldn't wait for the elevator, it took too long sometimes.

There was no response on the other end. Then there was a loud banging sound. Aaron had dropped the phone. Cursing under his breath Rossi tried to get Aaron to respond but with no luck. He'd reached his car. Unlocking it, he threw the go bag on the passenger seat and started the engine. It took almost everything he had but he hung up on Aaron and began phoning for help. Aaron was in no shape to call for help himself so Rossi was going to have to do it for him.

"What the hell have these two gotten themselves into?" Rossi wondered out loud as he finished filling in the emergency services, put his car in reverse and screeched out of his parking spot. It was going to be the shortest hour and a half trip he'd ever driven.


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

The first place Rossi stopped was at the hospital. The hospital was of modest means. It had a total of four examination rooms, a single surgery suite and a single room that was used for x-rays and laboratory testing. It was a pretty small affair so it was easy to find the section Hotch was in. The fact that all hell seemed to have broken loose was a pretty good indication that he'd found the right spot. There was a rather heated argument going on behind a partially closed door.

"Mr. Hotchner, I really must insist that you get back in bed. You are suffering from a severe migraine. The medicine I've given you will reduce the pain and the other symptoms but you need to lie still in a dark room for several hours before the migraine will begin to let up," a male voice was saying. The level of frustration in the voice was clearly evident. Rossi had to hide a smile that tried to creep across his face. If the situation were less dire he would have had fun giving his friend a hard time.

"I have a missing friend. I will not stay in this hospital or any other until I know that he has been found and is safe," came Aaron's familiar response. As sick as Aaron had been when he'd called Rossi, Dave knew that he would refuse to be kept out of the investigation.

With a quiet knock, Dave stepped inside the room. He found Aaron, all ready partially dressed, trying to pull his shirt on. The drugs the doctor gave him must have been awfully powerful because Hotch was having trouble getting his arms through the appropriate holes. Upon hearing the knock, he turned to see who it was. Relief spread across his dark features.

"Hi, Hotch. How are you feeling?" Dave asked. He stepped toward his friend. Aaron had a decided lean to the right. Evidently his headache was affecting his balance as well. Concern burned through Dave's mind. He knew that Hotch had been under a great deal of stress of late but he'd always handled it so well before.

"I'm fine. Have you had a chance to look over the hotel room yet?" Hotch asked. It was so good to see the older man. Suddenly things didn't seem so hopeless.

"This is the first stop I've made. Hello," Dave said, extending his hand to the blond haired young doctor standing to the side. "Dave Rossi, FBI."

"Oh, you work with Mr. Hotchner," the doctor said. "Maybe you can convince him to stay in bed."

"That's going to be very hard to do," Dave admitted. He caught hold of Aaron as the man began to teeter, just a little. He was going to have to have a serious discussion with the doctor about what was wrong with Hotch and what he'd given him. Carefully he guided the dark haired man to the side of the bed. Otherwise he was sure Aaron was going to end up on the floor. He still hadn't managed to get his shirt on.

"He doesn't really have much choice. I've given him some strong pain killers to help with the migraine he's suffering from," the doctor stated. The FBI agent was having one of the worst migraines the doctor had ever seen. The vomiting and loss of balance were all a result of the pounding going on inside his head. The pain killers were doing a number on the pounding but he was still going to suffer some of the other side affects until the migraine passed. "They are going to affect his ability to think, his balance and probably leave him weak. The last thing he needs is to deal with more stress."

"Our colleague is missing. That alone is adding to the stress. The sooner we find him the sooner the stress will disappait," Dave said. He had begun to help Aaron with his shirt. It really bothered him to see his usually in control Unit Chief so completely uncoordinated and out of sorts.

There was another knock on the door and a man wearing a sheriff's uniform entered. He was about thirty five with close cropped blond hair. His handsome face was pressed into a stern scowl. "Agent Hotchner, we've done a complete search of the area around the hotel for a five block radius. There is no sign of your agent."

OOOOO

Rachel walked into Tom's room. She wasn't sure if she'd ever get used to calling him Matt. The name just didn't seem to suit him. Fear spiked through her. For a brief moment she couldn't see him. Then she noticed him on the floor, behind the only chair in the room. Evidently he'd woken up and tried to escape again. Well, she didn't blame him.

Moving over to him, Rachel pulled a blanket off of the bed and pulled the chair out of the way. She didn't feel quite up to moving him but she didn't want to leave him on the ground. Matt looked so uncomfortable on his stomach with his left arm trapped underneath him and his right leg kind of at an awkward angle from his body. Gently she rolled him over enough to free his arm and moved his leg so it was at a more natural angle. When she had more energy, she was going to have to wrap that ankle. It had turned an ugly blue/black color while she was gone.

Exhausted beyond words, Rachel stood up, blew out the lantern and went back to where Matt lay. She settled down beside him, pulled the blanket up over both of them and promptly fell asleep.

OOOOO

Enfolded in the velvet darkness of unconsciousness, Reid tried desperately to stay there. He didn't know what was waiting for him in the light, all he knew is it probably wasn't good. He knew it was a cowardly position. It wasn't what Morgan would do or Emily.

Steeling himself physically and mentally, Reid swam to the surface of his mind. The pain was there, waiting to pounce. It took his breath away. While he tried to catch his breath the ribs on his right side almost seemed to creak. His hip was still burning too. Forcing his eyes open, Reid tried to figure out where he was.

"Ah, you're awake," a familiar voice purred. It took a few moments for Reid's eyes to adjust to the gloomy light. Then he saw the woman from the bar hovering over him. He was lying flat out on his back on a really hard bed. The air around him was damp and cool. There were no windows and the walls were made out of dirt. He was underground.

Reid tried to respond to her statement but he was still gagged and bound. There was a hunger in the woman's dark eyes that Reid had seen far too often. The only difference was that it wasn't usually directed at him. Ice settled into his stomach. He had a sneaky suspicion that he'd found the reason Matt hadn't come home.

"Well, it's time to unwrap my gift. I just hope you're worth all the trouble," Mary stated as she reached up to begin unbuttoning Reid's shirt. The ice was now travelling through his whole body. Ignoring the pain, Reid tried to get away from the woman's cold fingers. She absently smacked him in his right side. The sudden pain that shot through his system sent his body into overload. Unconsciousness slipped over him.

"Well, that's no fun," Mary said. He was skinny and hairless. Reid's body reminded her of a prepubescent boy. For reasons she didn't bother to pursue, that thrilled her. It was going to be more fun that she'd anticipated.

OOOOO

On the way back to the hotel Aaron filled Dave in on why he and Reid had been here in the first place. He detailed what they'd done so far to find the missing boy and who they'd talked to. He thought he was doing remarkably well, considering the pain medicine he was on.

At the wheel of his car, Dave was having a hard time following what Aaron was saying. His usually articulate and succinct Unit Chief was subtly slurring words and not finishing sentances. He'd talked to the doctor about Aaron's diagnosis and treatment while Aaron had been struggling to get his suit jacket on. He knew the drugs were heavy duty and were responsible for Aaron's incomplete thoughts and the fact that he kept drifting off to sleep while talking. Dave was having real concerns about having allowed Aaron to sign himself against medical advice.

Pulling into the parking lot of the hotel, Dave shot a look at his superior. Aaron had been describing last night with Reid and had slipped into sleep again. His chin rested against his chest and his hands rested on his thighs. A weaker man would fall asleep and stay there until the migraine let up.

Dave was just wondering if he was going to be able to convince Aaron to take a rest once they got to the hotel room when Aaron's head came up. He blinked his eyes twice and then focused on the entrance to the hotel.

"Reid isn't here," Aaron stated. The very thought left a dark void in his mind and heart. Guilt tried to overwhelm him. Reid's disappearance was on his head. The passenger side door opened. Then Dave was reaching inside to help Hotch to his feet.

"I figured this was as good a place to start the search as any," Dave stated. Carefully he guided Hotch to his feet and steered him toward the front door. He'd all ready gotten as much information from the sheriff as he could and knew which room was theirs. At this moment he wasn't so sure that Hotch was thinking clearly enough to know.

"All right," Aaron stated. The world seemed to be shifting under his feet. He had to lean heavily on Dave's supporting arm to keep from falling on his face. A quick mental shake didn't seem to help much. Damn he hated feeling weak and useless.

The trip up the elevator was done in silence. Beside him, Dave saw that Aaron was swaying on his feet. He began to run through where the other members of the unit were again. He was going to need help if he was going to find Reid and the boy they'd been looking for.

Years of experience told him that Reid's disappearance and the boy's were connected. He wouldn't be surprised to find that they were both abducted by the same person. There was no doubt in Dave's mind that Reid had been abducted. There was no way the young profiler would have left Hotch alone for any length of time feeling the way he was.

"Reid didn't take his messenger bag, "Rossi stated as he looked around the room. "Clearly he wasn't intending to be gone for very long."

"Last night is a little blurry," Aaron admitted as he settled onto his bed. It suddenly seemed very inviting. "But I seem to remember him saying something about taking a walk."

"Well, that's someplace to start. If he was on foot the area of the search is significantly less than if he were in a vehicle," Rossi said. He pulled out his cell phone and hit speed dial. He just hoped Morgan wasn't too far away. Despite what Hotch thought, he wasn't going to be a whole lot of help.


	9. Chapter 9

_Hi. I'm very grateful to stoneagequeen, the-vampire-act and Sue1313 for your reviews of the last chapter!! You help to keep me motivated. I'm also very grateful for all of you who have subscribed to story alert or have made this one of your favourite stories. I just REALLY wish that you would review. I'm kind of out of my depth here and love to know what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong. The only way to find that out is by you letting me know._

_Thank you again to everyone reading this story._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER NINE

"We should start searching the hotel," Hotch stated. It took every ounce of will to keep from simply lying down and giving in to oblivion.

"I agree," Dave stated. He'd seen everything there was to see in the room, including the fact that Reid's key card for the hotel room was still missing. He tried to not stare as Hotch forced himself off of the bed.

They took the elevator to the main floor. Dave was distinctly aware of the fact that Hotch was swaying on his feet. He chose to ignore it. Until Morgan got here Aaron was his only help. The first place Dave wanted to start looking was at the front desk. He was sure the sheriff had all ready talked to the hotel staff but they didn't have the same training as the FBI agents.

As the two men headed toward the front desk, Rossi spotted the restaurant. Dave realized he was famished. Gently he steered Hotch in that direction. The Unit Chief had to eat too, after all.

"We will question the hotel staff, as soon as we eat some breakfast. The sheriff has my number if he finds anything," Dave replied. The place was pretty busy but he spotted an empty booth just inside the door. That was probably best anyway Aaron was having more trouble walking. The drugs must be taking a firmer hold of his body.

"We need to be out looking for Reid," Aaron argued. He tried to pull away from Dave. The older man didn't even break his stride as he stepped inside the restaurant and headed for the booth.

"We will," Dave repeated. It was very disconcerting to see Aaron in this shape. The first and only time Dave had seen the Unit Chief hurt had been following an explosion. Distantly he wondered if Hotch's difficulty with balance was a result of the damage done to his right ear.

The waitress came up and quickly took their order. Aaron was grateful to see that it wasn't the same one from yesterday. He knew his head wouldn't be able to handle her incessant talking. The waitress came back with two cups of steaming hot coffee and settled them down in front of the agents.

"Your breakfast will be here shortly. Just call if you need anything," she stated with a smile.

"Thank you very much," Dave responded. Across the table Aaron was holding his mug between his hands. While Dave watched, he tried to lift it to his lips. It was almost all he could do to manage the feat without dumping it into his lap. His hands were shaking so badly that the hot, brown fluid sloshed onto the table.

"How long do I have to take these pills?" Aaron asked. He knew the migraine was bad but the side effects of the drugs seemed to be that much worse.

"Until your migraine goes away. The doctor is expecting you for a follow up appointment tomorrow morning," Dave answered.

"I hope to not be here tomorrow," Aaron stated. He ran a hand through his close cropped dark hair and settled his fingers on the bridge of his nose. The nausea was trying to reassert itself.

"My sentiments exactly." Further conversation was pre-empted by the ringing of Dave's cell phone. Pulling it out of his jacket pocket, Dave flipped it open. "David Rossi."

For a brief moment Hotch felt the urge to snatch the phone out of the other man's hand. He hated being out of the loop. Instead he contented himself drinking his coffee and waiting for Dave to end the call.

"Thank you, sheriff, we'll be there shortly," Dave stated. Then he flipped his phone shut. He looked at Hotch, his eyes troubled.

"What was that? Have the local PD found any sign of Reid?" Aaron demanded.

"A passerby noticed blood on the main street downtown. He has the area cordoned off and will wait for us to arrive before processing the scene," Dave informed him.

"We'd better go then," Aaron said as he tried to exit the booth. He was stopped by a strong hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he found Dave staring back at him intently from the other side of the table.

"When we've finished eating. The last thing I need right now is for you to pass out on me," Dave stated. He was also hoping that by then Morgan would be a little bit closer to them.

"The scene is degrading while we're sitting here," Aaron retorted. He chose to ignore the comment about passing out. Although, it was a distinct possibility.

"Another forty-five minutes isn't going to change things," Rossi stated. Just then the waitress arrived with their breakfasts.

OOOOO

"Aw, isn't that sweet. Wake up," Mary growled. In an instant Rachel was awake and blinking against the beam of a flash light aimed directly in her face. She rolled up onto her elbow, unconsciously moving to protect the still unconscious Matt. The boy was lying on his side, curled up against her front. He'd apparently been cold last night.

"Is someone here?" Rachel asked. Her first thought was that they'd been found out. It was almost a relief. But the look on Mary's face beyond the beam of light wasn't one of abject terror. It was one of hunger. Rachel's blood turned to ice running through her veins.

"No. You'd better go check on my new toys. I don't think they've had a very good night." Mary wasn't finished yet, Rachel could tell from the rage still emanating from her very being. The last thing Rachel wanted to do was to leave young Matt under her tender guidance but she had to think of the other two. Mary hadn't allowed her to examine them but she could tell that they were both injured. She needed to look them over.

"Please, don't hurt him," Rachel pleaded as she gained her feet. She tried to not notice the blue pill Mary was holding between two fingers.

"Don't you worry, I plan on keeping him around for quite a while," Mary stated, an ugly smile on her face as she escorted Rachel to the door.

Standing outside in the hallway, Rachel heard the door close behind her and then something moved up against it. Mary wasn't taking any chances of her interrupting her fun. Shouldn't she be tired by now? Rachel wondered as she headed for the closest room.

Timidly, Rachel pushed the first door open. In the rust to move the two men she'd lost track of who went where. Mary had been considerate enough to leave a gas lantern burning in the room. The light from the hole in the ceiling wouldn't have been enough to do anything for the young man huddled in the corner of the room.

"Hi," Rachel said, unsure of what else to say. 'I'm sorry I let you be abused?' Somehow that just seemed vulgar given the circumstances. "I'm here to help."

Well, that wasn't entirely true. If it were, she'd knock Mary unconscious and drag the three men outside to her SUV and get them to a hospital. Feeling defeated, Rachel cautiously crossed the floor of the room. The young man was curled up in a fetal position in the corner. In the dim light it was kind of hard to figure out which one it was.

"I'm Rachel, what's your name?" Rachel said as she continued to move. It was kind of like trying to get close to a scared animal. The similarity wasn't lost on her. Swallowing bile, Rachel knelt down beside the boy. Relief flowed through her when she realized he was unconscious. That made things so much easier.

Gently, Rachel caught hold of the boy under the shoulders and began to drag him over to where the bed was cut into the wall. His skin was slick with sweat, blood and dirt. There were probably other fluids on his skin too but Rachel chose to not think about those.

As she moved the boy's long, thin frame onto the bed Rachel recognized him as the younger of the two. Mary had said he was an FBI agent. Why the hell did she kidnap him? People who were very good at their jobs would be searching for him. Hadn't Mary said there were two of them? That meant the chances of getting caught had increased significantly. Suddenly Rachel wasn't so sure that was a bad thing.

The young man seemed to be nothing but arms and legs. It took a few more moments to get them sorted out and settled properly on the bed. Rachel was disgusted to see that he was naked. There were bruises showing up on his torso, stomach and back. Some of them were undoubtedly from how Mary had kidnapped him. There were also marks on his thighs and buttocks. They looked suspiciously like claw marks.

"Damn her to hell," Rachel breathed. Tears sprang to her eyes as she left the room. She was going to need was warm water to clean him up. The last thing the young man needed was to develop an infection. As she filled an old camp pot with water from the pump, Rachel hoped that whatever else was wrong with him was within her abilities to deal with. Otherwise his existence in these cells was going to be particularly short and painful.

The rivulets of water washed the dirt, blood and sweat off Reid's body. Rachel was shocked by how young his physique seemed. She felt dirty just touching him to clean his wounds, like she was molesting a young child. She hoped that this hadn't been the boy's first experience with sex. The thought made her profoundly sad.

OOOOO

Finished with Reid, Rachel emptied the contents of her basin and boiled more water. Numb with disgust and shock, she made her way to the next room and whatever horrors were contained therein.

Pushing the door open, Rachel peered inside. The first place she checked was the corner. It was empty. Then she spotted the tall young man sprawled in the bed. He too was still unconscious. Taking a shaky breath, Rachel made her way inside. She was going to get this over with as soon as she could.

After Mary had had her way with the young men it wasn't the same taking care of them. As she touched them, trying to mend the damage the older woman had done, she felt dirty. The same kind of dirty she'd felt thanks to Mary's brothers. It was wrong. She knew it to the core of her being.

A sob escaped while Rachel gently washed Jared's battered face. He looked so damned young and innocent. Two things Rachel had never had the chance to be. Tears continued to streak down her round face as she made her way down Jared's throat to his chest. He was shivering and his skin was covered in a cold sweat. Rachel knew that there as a very good chance that it was shock from what his body had withstood the last few hours, including the kidnapping.

"I'm so very sorry," Rachel breathed. Black despair welled up inside of her. What had she done? What had she caused? The only thing that kept her firmly grounded in the here and now was the young man under her fingers. She had to stay. She had to pay her penance and stay to take care of them.


	10. Chapter 10

_Hello! Thank you, thank you, thank you to stoneagequeen, Sue1313 and the-vampire-act for once again reviewing this story. I appreciate you taking the time to do that from the bottom of my heart!_

_A/N: I didn't plan very well when I named Jared's brother Dave. I was looking for a name that started with D and that was the only one that came. So, from now on I'm going to have to refer to Jared's brother as Dave and David Rossi as Rossi. Otherwise things are going to get very confusing in a hurry._

_I'm avoiding having Emily, Garcia and J.J. in the story because I don't feel comfortable writing their characters. I almost didn't put Morgan in it either for exactly the same reason. If I make Morgan to anything that is out of character, PLEASE let me know._

_I don't know that the next chapter will come as quickly but I'll do the best I can._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TEN

Dave woke up with a start. Memories of the night before flashed through his mind. Damn, but that was a wild night, he thought. Rubbing his face with a hand, Dave looked around at the bed he'd woken up in. Beside him, the woman from the bar, he seemed to remember her name was Chris, was sleeping soundly. Thank God.

Using every skill he'd learned as a bounty hunter, Dave slipped out of the bed without disturbing her and found his clothes. The last thing he wanted to do was wake her up and have to deal with the awkward morning after conversation. He slipped into his boxers and jeans and was pulling his t-shirt on as he headed for the front door, his boots and socks clutched in one hand.

Parked out front he found his muscle car right where he'd left it. Climbing in the driver's side, Dave wandered if Jared had made it home last night. It wouldn't be the first time the stupid kid had spent the night walking. But that was because Dave had brought his new friend back to the motel room.

Man he needed a shower. Dave made the trip to the motel as quickly as he could without taking the chance of getting caught for speeding. That was the last thing he needed at the moment. He'd had enough to drink last night that he probably still had alcohol in his system. A DUI would certainly screw up his life.

Dave made it to the motel parking lot in one piece. He pulled up in his assigned parking spot, turned the car off and climbed the steps two at a time. By the time her reached the door, Dave had the motel key in his hand. Unlocking the door, he threw it open, hoping to catch his kid brother still snoozing.

It took a total of two heartbeats for Dave to register the fact that Jared wasn't sprawled on his bed, that he wasn't in the bathroom. What the hell? That didn't track. Quickly, Dave stepped into the room and dumped Jared's duffle bag onto the nearest bed.

"Damn it, Jared. Where are you?" Dave breathed as he realized all of his brother's clothes were there except for the ones he'd been wearing the night before. The shower forgotten, Dave trashed the rest of the room. All of his brother's stuff was here. Everything except him. Cursing under his breath, Dave picked up the phone. The sheriff wasn't a huge fan but he had to report his brother's disappearance.

OOOOO

Breakfast was an abrupt affair. Aaron spent most of the time fuming and playing with his food. The very sight of the bacon and eggs sent his stomach into convulsions. He finally chewed on the bread with a little bit of peanut butter on it. It was driving him absolutely mad to be sitting here when there was a possible lead on Spencer.

"You need to eat," Rossi stated. He'd eaten the majority of his own breakfast and had spent the last two minutes watching his superior. Two pieces of toast wasn't going to be enough to keep Aaron going and Rossi had the feeling they were in for a very long day.

"We need to go see what the sheriff found," Aaron countered. So far the bread was staying down. For that he was thankful. Now he felt the need to start moving.

"First I want you to take this," Rossi instructed as he handed over one of the pain killers the doctor had prescribed. He knew Aaron well enough to know that if he left the pills up to him, Aaron would keep forgetting to take them. It was a little early but Rossi wanted to make sure his boss took the pill the first time with food, just in case.

"I'm fine," Aaron stated. He looked at the pill was it were from another planet. The headache was beginning to reassert itself but at least he could begin to think clearer. Aaron wasn't sure he was willing to give that up.

"Either you take this pill or I'm going to lock you in the hotel room," Rossi said with a smile. It wasn't an idle threat. He would relief his boss of duty if Aaron made it his only option. Personally, Rossi hoped Aaron wouldn't push things that far.

Less than graciously Aaron accepted the pill. Rolling it between his thumb and index finger he considered calling Rossi's bluff. Then he put it in his mouth and swallowed it with some water.

"All right, let's go see the sheriff," Rossi stated as he stood up throwing a couple of bills on the table.

OOOOO

The trip to the scene downtown only took about ten minutes. By the time Rossi pulled up just outside the yellow tape, Aaron was sound asleep in the passenger seat. Putting the car in park, Rossi glanced over at his friend.

For the first time since he'd seen him this morning, the pain lines around Aaron's eyes were smoothed away. His mouth was slightly open and his forehead rested against the cool glass of the passenger window. Before he turned the engine off, Rossi rolled down the driver's window. He didn't want Aaron getting too hot in the morning heat, especially if he was going to leave him in the car.

"How's he doing?" the sheriff asked when Rossi joined him beside the nearest police vehicle. He could see the older man in the front seat.

"The pills are helping. Finding Reid would help even more," Rossi responded.

Nodding his understanding, the sheriff led Rossi to the alley. On the ground at the alley entrance was a smear of blood. Also in the area were acceleration marks from a mid-sized car.

"The shop keeper came out to sweep the sidewalk, same as he always does in the morning. This is what he found today," the sheriff said. "There's also blood spatter on the other sidewalk. My crime scene analysts have taken samples. Do you happen to know Dr. Reid's blood type?"

"I'm not sure. I'll find out and let you know as soon as I can," Rossi replied. This wasn't making any sense. How could the situation turn from an opportunistic kidnapping to a planned kidnapping of a federal agent? And who was the other blood donor? "Have you had any other missing person's reports?"

"Yeah, one just came in. A pair of bounty hunters was in town for the night after turning in a pedophile. They're brothers. The older one spent the night at a local woman's house after meeting her at a bar. The younger one went for a walk and hasn't been seen since," the sheriff stated.

"The brother had gone for a walk last night as well?" Rossi said more to himself than the sheriff. Things were starting to fall into place, he hoped. Hadn't Hotch mentioned a bar that he and Reid had gone to yesterday for lunch?

Before Rossi had a chance to continue with that line of thought, a car skidded to a haul just outside the crime scene tape. Looking over, Rossi recognized Morgan as the agent practically bound out of his vehicle and crossed the distance between them in a few strides.

"Rossi, what the hell is going on?" Morgan demanded. He'd seen Hotch asleep in Rossi's car. That simple fact told him just how out of whack things were.

"Sheriff Hicks, this is Special Agent Derek Morgan. He's come out from Quantico to help us in the investigation," Rossi introduced the bald African American to the slightly shorter sheriff. Then Rossi proceeded to fill Derek in.

OOOOO

Young Jared's tall, muscular body trembled under Rachel's fingers while she worked to clean up the gash marks Mary had left him with. Her own hands were trembling as well with suppressed rage. She hated Mary. She hated her for everything she was doing to these young men. She hated her for everything she'd allowed to help while they were growing up. Mary was older. She was supposed to protect Rachel from what she knew her brothers were capable of. Instead, she used removing her friendship as a way to keep Rachel vulnerable to their advances. Better they went after Rachel than her.

One part of Rachel's mind understood. The logical part, the part that could sympathise with the fact that Mary had been in an untenable situation as well and had used Rachel as a distraction. The younger, more vulnerable part of Rachel's mind railed against the decision Mary had made. Knowing what her brothers were, how could she throw Rachel to the wolves like that?

A low moan reminded Rachel that it wasn't Mary lying naked on the bed. She'd been using a little too much pressure while cleaning the last of the claw marks on Jared's stomach.

"Sorry," Rachel said. Mentally she chastised herself. She needed to keep her head in the game. Taking a few moments to collect herself, Rachel pulled the cloth off Jared's enflamed skin and rinsed it in the basin.

"Where am I?" The voice startled Rachel. She was too used to the young men not being awake enough to speak. She looked down into Jared's blue-green eyes and instantly felt ashamed.

"I'm so sorry," Rachel said. "You're in a hole in the ground."

"How?" Jared managed. He tried to move his hands but they were still bound. Mary hadn't trusted his size enough to undo the cords. Reid was much more easily managed even while awake.

"I'm not sure but I think Mary ran you over with her car," Rachel stated. She'd sat back on her haunches to give Jared a little more room. He was lying on his back with his arms trapped underneath. Rachel hadn't even finished cleaning his front yet. She had no idea of what kind of damage he was lying on.

"Please, help me," Jared said while he struggled weakly with the bonds.

"Sorry, sweetheart, that's not going to happen," Mary said from the door. Before Rachel had a chance to stop her, she stepped up to the bed and forced two valium into Jared's mouth. Then she placed her hand over his mouth and nose, making him swallow.

Satisfied that the young man wasn't going to get away, she turned to Rachel. "I have to leave to open the bar for the day. I've given them all their dose of valium. I'm going to take the SUV to get back to my car. I'll leave it there so I can come back tonight, the bar closes at eleven on Sundays."

"Don't you think you could use a good night's rest?" Rachel suggested. The thought of what Mary was going to do to the young men froze her blood in her veins.

"I've never felt better," Mary stated, a Cheshire like grin on her face. "Give me your keys."

Rachel had two choices. Refusing would mean that Mary would be here for the day when the young men really needed the time to recuperate. Saying yes would result in her having no way to leave. It was the lesser of the two evils. She'd brought enough supplies that they would all be fine for a number of days.

"Here," Rachel said. She tossed the keys over to the older woman and turned her attention back to Jared. All ready his eyes were becoming glazed as the drug took hold of his body. Silently, Rachel hoped Mary would get lost on the way back or drive her car over a cliff. Either option would suffice.

Without another word, Mary turned and left the room. She still had a busy day ahead of her.

OOOOO

"Is Hotch really okay?" Morgan asked. He was looking down at his Unit Chief through the passenger window. Except for the time Hotch's eardrum had been ripped open by a blast, Morgan couldn't remember seeing his boss so vulnerable and out of sorts. Even when Hailey had left him with Jack, Aaron had kept everything together. Looking at Hotchner now sent a chill up his spine.

"He has a severe migraine. The pain killers are keeping it manageable for him but they have other side effects," Rossi said.

"Where are the others?" Morgan asked. He had expected Emily and J.J. to be here.

"Emily and J.J. went to Vegas for the weekend. Will is babysitting," Rossi replied. "Garcia is waiting for our call in Tech. I need to know Reid's blood type. Could you find that out for me?"

"Sure. Then we're going to that bar to see if it's the connection we're looking for," Morgan stated as he pulled his cell out of its holder.


	11. Chapter 11

_Thank you very much for your reviews on the last chapter! After much soul searching (well, as much soul searching as a person can do in five minutes!) I've decided to bring the women in. I'm still uncomfortable with them. Apparently I am more comfortable with psychotic women, not normal, driven ones. Anyway, I hope I haven't taken them too far out of character. I hope you will let me know if I do!_

_Special thanks to Sue1313, stoneagequeen and the-vampire-act for your continued support, I take everything you tell me to heart. Also, thank you to greenlz! I loved hearing from you. I know Hotch eating the toast wasn't very likely but I wanted an excuse for Rossi to give him another pain killer, just a little too soon. Hotch is so much fun to play with when he's drugged! And, last but not least, thank you to star fire darkness for convincing me to bring Garcia, Prentiss and J.J. in. Only time will tell if it's a good move or not!_

_I hope you enjoy chapter 11._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"Hi Garcia," Morgan said into his cell phone. This was the call he wasn't looking forward to. Reid was the youngest of the Unit. They all had a need to protect him. The thought of the young genius being missing was driving them all a little crazy. And now he had to find out what Reid's blood type was. Garcia was going to freak.

"Morgan! It's about time! What have you heard? Have you found him yet? How's Hotch?"" Garcia's voice was thrumming with concern. Morgan could almost see her in her sanctuary pacing like a caged animal. When she wasn't pacing she'd been frantically searching her computers for something, anything that might help find their youngest.

"I'm sorry, Garcia. I've only been here for a few minutes. Nothing much has changed. Hotch is sleeping in the car so I assume he's feeling better," Morgan stated. He was hoping that by answering her questions that she wouldn't think too much about what he was about to ask. "I need some information. Do you know what Reid's blood type is?"

"What do you mean Hotch is asleep in the car? Hotch never sleeps in the car. Oh, he must be feeling awful if he fell asleep there!!" There was a momentary pause on the line. "Why do you need to know what Reid's blood type is? Is he hurt? You've found blood, haven't you? Oh my God. Please tell me he's not hurt!"

"Garcia, calm down," Morgan stated. He could hear the woman starting to hyperventilate in her anxiety. "Yes, we've found blood. We are trying to determine if this is where Reid was taken from."

"Okay, okay." Morgan could tell that the blond woman was trying to take a few deep breaths to calm herself. While she did that he could hear the computer keys clicking frantically. "His blood type is A positive. I'll send a complete DNA profile to your PDA. Should I be starting a file that has everyone's blood type and general medical information in it for times like these?"

"Sweetheart that might be a good idea. Look, we're heading over to a place called 'Mar's Bar' on Hastings Street. See what you can dig up on it. I'll call after we've finished out interviews," Morgan tried to reassure her. He glanced over to Rossi. The older man was talking with the sheriff.

"Call me as soon as you know anything, anything at all!" Garcia demanded.

"Of course, you will be the first person I call," Morgan said. Then he disconnected the call. He knew Garcia was scared. Hell, they all were. For someone to kidnap an FBI agent, they had to be either cocky as hell or just plain nuts.

"Reid's blood type is A positive," Morgan said as he stepped toward the two men. Techs and officers were swarming the area, collecting every piece of evidence they could find. Now that the kidnapping included a Federal Agent the anxiety had increased tenfold. "I have his DNA profile on my PDA if you need it."

"I'll pass that along. I think for now running with the blood type is the fastest way to figure out what happened here. I'll let them know about the profile. They'll need it later on to solidify the case against the perpetrators," Captain Hicks said. "I'll let you know as soon as we come up with anything conclusive."

"Thanks. We'll go to the bar and see what we can find there," Rossi stated. Nodding at Morgan, he headed to his vehicle. He was somewhat disturbed to find that Hotch was still sound asleep. It didn't even look like he'd moved since Rossi had left the car.

Dragging Hotch around town probably wasn't the best idea but Rossi knew he'd protest if they tried to take him back to the hospital. Heaving a quiet sigh, he quietly opened the car door and slid inside. Morgan similarly entered the rear passenger side. In the rear view mirror, Rossi could see the concern plainly on the younger man's face. The longer this took the less chance they would have of finding Reid or the young man.

OOOOO

Dreams floated through Reid's mind. Disturbing dreams full of violence and lust. He wanted to wake up from them, to get away from them. But when he awoke he found that they were all too real. Reid hissed as the pain in his thighs and stomach registered. It felt like a burning hot brand was being applied to the skin where the woman had cut him with her finger nails. His cheeks burned bright red in humiliation.

'Oh God,' Reid thought as he looked around frantically, trying to figure out his surroundings. It looked like something out of a bad movie. Or out of far too many cases he and the team had been on. He was being held underground, he could tell from the dirt walls and floors. The cell was very primitive in nature. Clearly kidnapping and holding him had not been planned any further than getting him here. That was both a good thing and a bad thing.

Gingerly, Reid tried to reach up to his head, to wipe at the blood he felt oozing out of a cut there, only to find that he couldn't. Fear turned his blood to ice. It wasn't the first time he'd been in a situation similar to this, the sexual content notwithstanding, but he still felt incredibly helpless and frightened.

To try to distance himself from the situation, Reid began to recite random statistics in his mind. He found a great deal of comfort and logic in statistics. It helped to make sense of the world for the young genius. It also helped to put the world into perspective. He tried to not think about the fact that he'd just become one of the statics that were running through his head.

There was a stitch in his right side. Reid tried to roll over to relieve the pain. Instead his hip and ribs exploded, showering his vision with red flares. A loud groan escaped his lips and then he panted, trying to make his way through the agony. That only irritated the problem further. He couldn't draw enough air around his broken ribs. His vision burned red and then black as he passed out.

OOOOO

"Maybe you should stay in the car," Rossi suggested. When they pulled up in front of the less than stellar building, the Unit Chief had come awake with a start. His dark eyes scanned outside the car windows and then they came to rest on Morgan in the backseat. Shame burned through his mind and body. Reid was missing because of him and he couldn't even stay awake enough to notice when one of his team arrived.

"I'm fine," Hotch grated. As if to prove the point, he undid his seatbelt and opened the door. It wasn't until he tried to gain his feet that his two companions knew he was lying. Hotch's legs began to tremble almost as soon as he made it upright. He had the door frame and the body of the car in a death grip just to keep from sitting back down.

"Yeah, you look it," Morgan stated as he stepped up beside his superior. "We've got this, Hotch. Why don't you stay in the car?"

"Because I've been here once all ready. I will be able to gauge the owner's reaction when you begin asking her questions," Hotch said between clenched teeth. He knew he should stay in the vehicle. He wanted to stay in the vehicle. But his ability to assess the woman's reactions would be invaluable if she had anything to do with this.

"All right," Rossi agreed after a few strained moments. He had to admit Hotch had a point. He wasn't walking into this situation for the first time. He may have an insight that he and Morgan may miss. Let's get him inside."

Hotch considered shaking the other two agents off but he knew that he wouldn't make it that far without their help. Each man took one of his arms and carefully guided him toward the door.

As they stepped inside, Hotch saw that not much had changed since yesterday. There were a whole two booths being used but otherwise the place was deserted. But then, it was only one in the afternoon. As his subordinates steered him toward the bar and stools sitting in front of it, Mary came out of the kitchen. An order of food was gripped in each hand as she slipped from the kitchen to the booths beyond.

"Hi there," she said, not bothering to look at them. "Take a seat I'll be right with you."

Once she deposited the food in front of her customers, Mary came back to the bar and moved behind it. It was then that she actually looked at the newcomers. It took everything in her arsenal to keep from reacting to Hotch's presence. Then she noticed just how pale and sweaty he was. Why, the man was ill. Wasn't that too bad?

"Well, hello there. What happened to your friend from yesterday?" Mary asked as she took her position on the other side of the bar from them. While she talked, she studied Hotch's two new companions as well as the state of the Unit Chief. What she found in the dark haired man's face and eyes amused her to no end.

"Agent Reid is missing, as is a young man that was in this bar yesterday," Rossi stated. The woman turned her dark eyes toward him. He studied them and her face very closely. All he found was mild concern.

"You're kidding! That's terrible! What happened to them?" Mary asked. She'd moved forward, her arms resting on the counter that separated them. She could see in all three men's eyes the fear and concern for their lost team member. If only they knew that she had young Reid's FBI badge and his photo ID in her purse. She also had Matt's and Jared's. She found being able to look at their pictures very soothing when work became chaotic. It helped her to relive the experiences in the cells with crystal clarity.

"We aren't sure yet. We believe that they have been kidnapped," Morgan stated. He too was examining the woman in front of them. He also took the time to observe the other patrons. Just because both men had been here didn't mean that it was necessarily a staff member that was involved.

"I don't believe it! That kind of thing just doesn't happen around here. Do you have any idea who would do such a thing?" Mary barely managed to keep her eyes from twinkling in delight. It was so easy to play these guys. All those years of role playing with Rachel were becoming very useful.

"We're working on it," Rossi said. He didn't want to disclose anything to this woman. If she was the unsub they didn't need to show her all their cards. Although, Rossi had to admit that he wasn't getting any warning bells off the woman. She appeared to be genuinely concerned.

"Did you gentlemen want anything to eat or drink?" Mary asked. She was trying to be relaxed. She knew if she didn't ask that question the men would become suspicious at some point. Secretly she was hoping that they'd get the hell out of Dodge and leave young Reid, Matt and Jared to her tender manipulations.

"No, thank you," Morgan stated. In fact he was hungry but looking around at the place he didn't want to risk eating here. Besides, who could think about food while Reid was missing?

"Well, I sure hope you find them soon. If you would like to ask questions, go right ahead. My regular staff comes in at three. Now, if you will excuse me, I have another order burning on the grill." With a nod to the three men, Mary went back into her kitchen. She really did have food cooking on the grill but it was also an excuse to get away from them before she slipped up.

Rossi and Morgan left Hotch sitting on a stool by the bar while they went over to question the other patrons. Hotch tried to keep his head up. For some reason it kept trying to slip to his chest and his eyes kept trying to close. Damn it, this isn't how he needed to be. Frustrated beyond words, Hotch watched Mary through the opening in the wall. The way she moved around the kitchen, cooking the food for her customers was almost graceful. A quick mental shake and Aaron tried to turn away from the bar to see if Rossi or Morgan were making any headway.

In the process of turning, Aaron just about slipped off the hard wood stool. Morgan was beside him, his strong hand on his elbow, keeping Hotch from finding the ground.

"I know you want to help, Hotch, but you really do need to go lie down for a while. At least until this headache passes," Morgan said. At first Hotch bristled at the statement. Then he saw the deep concern in Derek's dark eyes.

"I'm afraid Derek's right, Hotch. We need you at a hundred percent if we're going to find Reid. The sooner you go lie down, the sooner that will happen," Rossi said as he and Morgan caught hold of the dark haired man and headed for the front door.

"All right," Hotch said in a quiet voice. In his friend's arms he suddenly felt very tired and weak. Lying down seemed like a very good idea as his knees started to tremble with fatigue. Rossi and Morgan would make better time if they didn't have to cart him all over the place.

Stepping through the door to the bar, Rossi and Morgan were both pleased and scared spit less by Aaron's remark. The simple fact that he was admitting defeat indicated just how truly awful he must be feeling. Rossi fingered the vial of pain killers in his pocket. Maybe he should give Hotch another one. But no, he couldn't risk taking the chance that taking more than the prescribed amount might cause more damage than good.

A car pulled up beside their vehicle. Out of habit Morgan immediately noted the license plate. It was a rental. The driver and passenger door slammed open almost simultaneously and then two very familiar female figures were rushing toward them.

"What the hell is going on?" Prentiss demanded as she took in Hotch's condition in a heartbeat.

"Where did you come from?" Morgan asked as he and Rossi continued to help Hotch toward their car and the front passenger seat.

"Did you honestly think that we were going to stay in Vegas while Reid is missing?" J.J. asked.

"Well, no. But I did tell Garcia to not tell you what's going on," Rossi replied. Gently, he and Morgan manoeuvred Hotch into the seat and then they turned to face the other members of the BAU.

"Penelope called us the moment she got off the phone with you," Prentiss said. This was all too incredible. How did a simple missing person escalate this quickly? Hotch and Reid had only been on the case for less than forty-eight hours. "She knew we'd want to know."

"How did you know we were here?" Hotch asked from the car. He was having a little trouble processing the latest developments. The pounding of his head was beginning to increase. Absently he swallowed bile.

"Garcia," was the simple answer.

OOOOO

Now that the whole team was here, Hotch wanted to keep working the case but he knew realistically that he couldn't. He allowed Rossi to take him back to the hotel room. It was better than the hospital, anyway. He took a quick shower to see if that would help. It didn't. If anything, now that his skin was damp from the water, it seemed unwilling to dry off.

Carefully Hotch made his way to his bed. Standing inside the hotel room door, Rossi made sure he was in bed and resting before he stepped forward.

"I'll leave your pills here. You need to take another one in four hours," Rossi instructed. The room was still pretty dark thanks to the pulled shades. He put the vial on the night table beside Hotch's bed before going to the table beside Reid's bed and turning the small lamp there on.

"I'm fine, Dave. Go to the sheriff's station. You're in charge now. If I need anything I'll give you a call," Hotch stated. His eyes were all ready trying to close despite the slick feel of sweat on his skin. It felt absolutely wonderful to be lying completely still.

"All right, I'll check in with you later," Rossi said. He hated to leave Hotch. It was so uncharacteristic of the man to be this vulnerable. But his first concern had to be Reid. He was the one in trouble. One last glance at his Unit Chief and Rossi slipped out the door.


	12. Chapter 12

_Hello!! I'm overwhelmed with the response I got for the last chapter! Thank you very much. I'm in all of your debt! _

_This chapter is a bit shorter but it's a pivotal one so I wanted to get it out tonight. I hope you enjoy it!!_

_Thanks again for all the wonderful reviews and for the helpful advice. I'm taking it all to heart, honest!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWELVE

The BAU took over Sheriff Hicks' office to set up their command center. J.J. was trying to keep the local newspaper and the TV stations under control. The last thing they needed was to advertise the fact that a Federal agent had gone missing while investigating a missing person's case. She would have thought that since she was dealing with a smaller city that it would have been easier to keep things under wraps. She quickly learned that she was wrong.

Rossi, Morgan and Prentiss were trying to develop a profile on the kidnapper. There were so many conflicting aspects to this case that it made creating a profile more of a challenger. While they worked and threw ideas back and forth, Rossi tried to keep his thoughts off of Hotch. It was now three o'clock. It was time for him to take another of the pain killers but Rossi didn't want to phone in case he was sleeping. Unfortunately, at the moment, Hotch was going to have to fend for himself.

OOOOO

Now that Mary knew there were more FBI agents in town the chances of getting caught had become astronomical. She wasn't finished yet. There were still so many things that she wanted to do to her boys. Damn. Getting caught would really screw things up.

Mary's regular staff had shown up for work. There weren't very many customers yet. At the moment she was in the backroom, her purse open. Within its confines, she fingered the ID. She wanted to go back to the cabin. Visions of what she was going to do and what she had all ready done played through her mind. Then a new thought rose to the surface.

Agent Hotchner's face floated before Mary's eyes. The pallor of his skin, the pain in his eyes spoke to her. The pain from losing his subordinate was so obvious, it virtually eclipsed the physical pain the man was in. That appealed to her. Well, who was she to keep him wondering what was happening to his friend? Not only did she have young Reid's ID in her purse, she also had his hotel key.

What if Hotchner wasn't in the hotel room? Mary wondered. What would she do then? Well, the same thing she intended to do anyway, going to the cabin. Her mind made up, Mary went and told Sandra, her most senior worker that she wasn't feeling well and was going to go home for the day. Mary added that she was going to take Monday off as well and asked Sandra to cover her shift. It was the first time in all the months Sandra had worked for her that Mary had taken a day off. She was more than happy to let the other woman take a few days.

The trip to the hotel had Mary on the edge of her seat. Would he be there? Would she be able to get Hotchner out of the room without getting caught? The anticipation was almost intoxicating. While she drove Rachel's SUV, Mary beat the tempo of the song on the radio on the steering wheel. This was just too much damned fun!

The parking lot was relatively empty. Most of the guests had all ready checked out and the new crop had yet to arrive. Mary parked the SUV by the back. She wanted to be able to go out the back either way. She was hoping it would be less obvious.

Being a small town, the security in the hotel was all last century. There were cameras in the halls but they went to VCR's whose tapes were recycled daily. The owner had never had a problem and honestly didn't expect one to show up now. Mary walked up to the side door, pulled it open and stepped confidently inside.

Getting up to the third floor was easy. All she had to do was take the stairs. No one saw her slip in the door or slip out. She walked up to the door with the number that was on the key. Holding her breath, hoping that they hadn't changed the key or done something else sneaky, she swiped the card through the reader. The little red light blinked green.

As quietly as she could manage, Mary opened the door and slipped inside. The room was dark except for the far bedside table lamp. In the dim light, she could see Agent Hotchner's profile as he slept. Completely unaware of what was going on around him. On the table beside his bed was a vial. Mary recognized it instantly as a vial of medicine.

Apparently Mr. Hotchner really was sick. That struck a chord with Mary. She knew she was doing the right thing by giving him the chance to see what had become of his young friend. The thought of trying to use valium on the man played through her mind. But no, that would take too long. Mary knew that if the man woke up there was no way she could restrain him. She'd come completely unprepared.

A quick inventory of the contents of the room didn't help her a lot. Until she spotted Agent Hotchner's gun sitting on the table beside the drugs. It was in a dark holster that had blended in with the surface of the table on her first examination. Well, it would be a whole lot easier if he walked out of here under his own steam.

Padding over to the table, Mary watched the dark haired man carefully. The last thing she needed was for him to wake up. She reached the holster and quietly picked it up. The gun was snapped into the holster. She was going to have to undo it in order to threaten the man. Her fingers shaking ever so slightly, Mary undid the snap as quietly as she could. She was just inches from his face. He was lying on his back with his head turned toward the light. Sleeping like this he looked so handsome and young.

It was a shame to have to wake him up. Mary slid the gun out of the holster. It felt cold and heavy in her hands. Despite all the big talk from her brothers, none of them had ever trusted her with a gun. Not even a pellet gun. Not that she blamed them. Given her feelings, she might have taken the gun after her brothers.

"If you want to see your friend, wake up," Mary stated as loudly as she dared. Looking down the barrel of the weapon that she held in both hands, she watched as Agent Hotchner's dark eyes opened and the blinked. Glee flowed through her when she saw his eyes widen as the situation registered.

"What are you doing here?" Hotch asked. The headache was still there, pounding behind his eyes but he pushed it to the back of his mind. The only thing that mattered at the moment was the woman with the gun pointed at his chest. Thoughts and possibilities raced through his mind. How could he have not seen the insanity burning in her brown eyes?

"I'm here to show you your missing friend. If you come quietly, I'll show you where he is. If you make a sound or a move that I don't like, I'll leave him there to rot and blow a hole in your heart," Mary said. She loved the feeling of power holding the gun on this man was giving her. It was almost as good as when she played with her boys. Almost.

"I will need to change into my street clothes," Aaron said. He was lying perfectly still. He didn't want to take a chance that she might accidently pull the trigger. The fact that the safety was still on could be remedied in a moment if she moved the index finger of her right hand. In his present state, with the drugs in his system, Hotch wasn't sure he could take her before she shot him. Besides, if she was really willing to take him to Reid he had to take the chance. "It will look out of place if I go outside with my night clothes on."

"Fine. You change right here where I can keep an eye on you," Mary said. A smile crept across her face. She was going to enjoy watching him change. Under Mary's intent scrutiny, Aaron carefully pulled the blankets off his legs and swung them over the side of the bed. The last thing he wanted to do was to change in front of this woman but he didn't see another choice.

Luckily Aaron's clothes were on the foot of the bed. He tentatively reached toward them. Still watching him like a hawk, Mary took a step backward to give him a little more room. She didn't want him to touch her. His only purpose was to suffer while he watched what she did to young Spencer. He wasn't going to be allowed to participate at all. That would ruin the whole effect.

Once Aaron had changed into his pants, shoes and white shirt, Mary motioned him toward the door with the gun barrel.

"Any funny business at all and you'll never find him," Mary warned him. When Aaron reached the door, Mary turned to the night table and pocketed the pills. They could come in handy. Then she caught up with the man waiting at the door. "Nice and easy, Agent Hotchner, I'm parked along the back of the building. We'll take the stairs and the side entrance."

Numbly, Aaron allowed himself to be steered out of the room and down the hall. Mary had hold of his right arm and was pressing the barrel of the gun against his side. None of this was making any sense to Aaron. He wasn't sure if it was the drugs or the headache that was making it so hard to think straight. Ultimately it didn't matter. What did matter was the fact that she'd managed to fool him with her ease and innocence. There was something that he should be taking from those qualities but it wouldn't come to the surface of his mind.

They made their way down the stairs. Again the stairwell was empty. Hotch had trouble putting one foot in front of the other. It was as if he'd suddenly lost his depth perception. He couldn't tell how far way the next step was. By the time they reached the bottom, Mary was becoming frustrated. The barrel of the gun was bruising Aaron's side and her hand was going to leave long, narrow bruises along the upper part of his arm.

By the time they reached the SUV, Aaron was all ready exhausted. He knew that he should be doing something to get away from her or to talk her out of her current actions but the words just wouldn't come. His free hand shook as he wiped it across his eyes, trying to get them to work better. Mary steered him to the back of the vehicle, popped the hatch and told him to climb in.

"I won't cause any trouble," Aaron tried to reassure her. The last thing he wanted to do was climb into the back of the vehicle. It would reduce the likelihood of him being able to find his way back to wherever she was going to take him.

"You're right about that," Mary stated. She waved the gun in his face. "Get inside. Either you do it willingly or I'll do it for you."

Turning his back toward the hatch, Aaron saw on the edge of it and then shimmied backwards. Despite being an SUV there was still only so much room in the back of it. Mary kept looking around to make sure that no one was watching. Her frustration boiled over when it seemed Aaron was taking forever to get his tall body into the hatch. With one last glance around, Mary brought the butt of the gun down on the back of his neck. Aaron fell limply onto his side. It only took a moment to lift his long legs up and slide them inside. Then she threw a blanket over him.

Mary knew this had taken too much time. She needed to get away from the hotel. Then she'd deal with securing the agent's arms and legs. She doubted that he was going to be any trouble anyway. It had been all he could manage to get down to the vehicle in the first place. Slamming the hatch shut, Mary stepped quickly to the driver's side door and climbed inside. She turned the engine over and carefully drove away.


	13. Chapter 13

_Thank you ever so much for the reviews stoneagequeen, Sue1313, Aggie Escott and the- vampire-act. I knew I was going to throw some readers with that last chapter! I can't help it. I'm evil by nature apparently! Hotch and Reid are my favourite characters so I tend to do the worst things to them. Now you know why I write the psychos so well!!! ;)_

_I hope you enjoy the next chapter. It's extra long to help fill in some of the gaps in the case._

_Thank you to star fire darkness for all your pointers. I'm trying to follow them as best I can!_

_If I've left anyone out, I'm sorry._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

"Who's in charge here?" a loud voice demanded from outside the command centre. As one the members of the BAU looked up from the files they were pouring over to look at each other. Derek raised an eyebrow at Rossi. Whoever that was sounded really pissed off.

The door to the command centre was thrust open and a dark blond haired man stood there, the anger seething through every fibre of his being. Unconsciously, Morgan, Rossi and Prentiss's hands stole toward their guns.

"Are you in charge?" the young man demanded, his blue eyes falling on Rossi since he was the oldest person in the room.

"My name is Special Agent David Rossi. How can I help you?" Rossi stated. He'd straightened up from the table he'd been poring over. On top of the table was a map of the town and the surrounding area.

"My brother Jared is missing. I understand that you are the ones looking for him. What do you have so far?" Dave demanded. He was tired of sitting on his ass waiting for the professionals to figure out what the hell happened. All he knew was that his kid brother had vanished in this hick town. He was ready to pull the whole place apart looking for him. It was what they did, after all, when they were looking for a bounty. He had a huge advantage on all these straight laced, law abiding citizens was he didn't have to follow the rules. Nor did he intend to.

"We are still looking over the three cases to see if they are connected," Rossi stated. He had no intentions of telling the man where they were. He was just hoping that he could tell him a few generalities and get rid of the man. How he'd gotten by J.J. and Sheriff Hicks was beyond him.

"It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. Is this really what you get paid to do?" Dave growled. He was taking stock of the three people in the room. So far what he'd found didn't impress him much. Even Derek's size and intensity did nothing for him. "You've been at this for hours. You've got to have more than that by now."

"I'm sorry," J.J. said breathlessly as she entered the room. She'd tried to keep Dave out but the man was good at what he did.

"Where's the other guy? The one who was in the bar with the kid?" Dave asked. He was extremely underwhelmed so far. If they didn't bother to tell him anything in the next five minutes, he would be gone to do his own investigation.

"Agent Hotchner isn't feeling well," Rossi said. He hated to admit it but he could tell that the civilian wasn't going to back down. Not that he blamed him.

"Great. Well, have fun staring at your little pieces of paper," Dave growled. "You have my cell phone number if you actually find something out." Brushing past J.J. Dave left the room and the police station without looking back. It was up to him to find his kid brother. These guys were too busy being stuck in procedure.

"It's okay, J.J., he has the right to be upset. Have the blood tests come back yet?" Rossi asked. His eyes were starting to lose focus from staring at the map for too long. He needed a distraction, however brief.

"Yes, they did," J.J. responded. Concern marred her beautiful face. Her blond hair, which was always just so, was looking a little unkempt. That alone indicated just how scared she was for their youngest member and the two missing men. "The results are positive. One of the blood samples was from Spencer."

Morgan cursed. He placed his hands against the table and let his head fall down between his shoulders. A small part of him had hoped desperately that whoever had been injured on Main Street, that it hadn't been Spencer. He knew it wasn't a rational thought but he couldn't face his 'kid brother' being in danger without him for backup.

Rossi ran his hands over his face. That wasn't unexpected but he too had been hoping it was all a mistake and Reid had just gotten lost. Then he shook himself and turned his attention back to work. They needed to look at the evidence again. They were missing something. That was the only thing that explained why they weren't making headway in the case.

For her part, Prentiss closed her eyes briefly and then opened them. She too turned her attention to the files. There had to be something there. There always was. She squashed the thought that it was frequently Reid or Hotch that made the breakthrough. They had to depend on their own abilities to get this done.

Seeing that each of her companions were in their own worlds following her announcement, J.J. decided to go back outside where she could do the most good. The rumour mill had started and she had to run off numerous streams of talk before they got carried away. Taking a deep breath, she approached the sheriff department's own community liaison. They had a lot of work to do.

OOOOO

Her hands trembling with rage, Rachel worked to fix up the latest damage done to young Matt. The boy was curled on his side, his legs drawn up to protect his privates even in a drug induced sleep. Rachel didn't even want to know what Mary was doing to the young men. The only thing was that she had a pretty good idea. None of it was good.

She'd all ready used butterfly band aids to close the worst of the gouges in the young man's skin. He hadn't had any scars before but Rachel doubted that was going to be the case anymore. The majority of the wounds were in areas of his body that most people wouldn't see. She knew trying to explain the marks to a potential lover was going to screw the boy up for years to come. What had she allowed to happen?

Water trickled between her fingers while she wrung the cloth she was using out. She'd spent the last couple of hours washing Jared and Reid. She'd also made sure to get them to drink some of the broth she'd made. It had all been in an attempt to postpone having to look in on Matt. It killed her to see what Mary did to him. That made a kind of sense. After all, she was responsible for Matt being here while Mary was responsible for the other two. Matt made her feel the guiltiest.

Sighing, Rachel turned back to her charge. He was still lying on his side with his back toward the wall but she'd managed to get him to unfold his legs. What she found made her blood boil. The boy's genitals were covered in blood and other fluids. There were multiple wounds over the whole area. As gently as she could, Rachel began to clean off the blood and make sure the wounds were also clean.

Under her ministrations, Matt began to whimper. He tried to pull away but he had nowhere to go. She was forced to lean against his legs to keep them out of the way. He kept trying to pull them up again. The longer she worked, the most the whimpers turned to quiet sobs. A quick glance at his beautiful face showed that tears were running out of the corners of his closed eyes. She felt so dirty.

As quickly as she could, Rachel finished cleaning him up. Her skin was crawling from the whole experience. The last thing she wanted to do was to hurt the boy more than he all ready was. She had no desire to take revenge of him for things done to her by Mary's brothers.

The last thing she did was throw the quilt back over him. Then she left the room. It didn't feel like a sanctuary any more. It felt like a prison for both of them.

Walking down the hallway to deal with the basin of dirty water, Rachel heard her SUV pull up out front of the cabin. It was the only sound that traveled because the tires transferred it through the ground. Rachel cringed. It was still afternoon. If that was Mary it could only mean bad things.

Inwardly terrified, Rachel climbed out of the tunnels and went to meet her 'friend'. Mary looked positively radiant as she stepped out of the driver's side door of her vehicle.

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked. She leaned against the door jamb of the cabin. She knew that she wasn't going to like this.

"I took the rest of the day off. I told them that I wasn't going to be there tomorrow either. Come look, I've found a new toy," Mary said as she stepped around to the back of the vehicle. She potted the hatch and waited for Rachel to join her.

Dread pulsing through her body, Rachel slowly made her way to the back of her SUV. Inside she found a dark haired man, clearly unconscious. Mary had tied his hands and feet and put a gag and blind fold on him. Oh God, she thought. Not again.

"Who is this?" Rachel asked. It was the only words that came to mind. Unconsciously she glanced around the glade the cabin sat in, looking for a way out. She found none.

"This is young Reid's supervisor," Mary responded. Her smile was from ear to ear. Clearly she was very proud of herself. Rachel cringed in her mind.

"Have you completely lost your mind?!" Rachel demanded. This was way too far out of control. This went beyond anything that Rachel had ever imagined in her secret dreams. She was sickened by what she knew the man was going to face.

"Come on! This is just like the games we used to play as kids! The only difference is that we're not playing with dolls anymore," Mary said. She knew Rachel was going to be a prude. The girl really did need to learn to loosen up a bit.

"This is nothing like the games we used to play!" Rachel hissed. The man looked pale and very vulnerable. She hated it. "Those were just games to escape what our lives were! No one ever got hurt in real life! This is completely different. These are real people. What you are doing to them is going to scar them for years. How can you do this?"

"Very easily. You should try it. You'll probably find that you like it," Mary responded. Without waiting for the woman's reaction, Mary caught hold of Hotch's hip and rolled him out of the hatch. His body hit the ground with a thud. "It will go easier on him if you help. The choice is yours."

There really wasn't a choice anymore. She'd lost her ability to choose the moment she drugged Matt. Defeated, Rachel bend down and slipped her hands under the man's shoulders. Might as well get this over with.

Once the two women reached the trapdoor with the still unconscious Hotch, Mary pushed him down inside. She smiled as he hit the ground, his right arm under his body in an awkward angle. Well, she still wanted to have fun with him after all.

"You're sick," Rachel said. Her voice had been devoid of all emotion.

"Yeah, you're right. And you love it," Mary replied as she climbed down the ladder. Catching hold of Hotch by his left shoulder, Mary began to drag him toward Reid's room. The thought of the dark haired man watching her with Reid excited her. She had thought about giving the FBI superior time to wake up and play with Jared for a little while instead but now she didn't want to wait.

Completely ignoring Rachel as she descended down the ladder, Mary pulled Hotch inside the room and slammed the door shut. She continued to drag Aaron's limp body until she had him in the corner that would give him the best view of poor Spencer still lying in his bed. Dropping Aaron like a sack of potatoes, Mary made her way over to where Spencer was. While she walked she dug in her purse and came up with a valium and Viagra. The last thing she needed at the moment was performance anxiety on the part of her young man.

"Here we go, sweetheart," Mary purred as she slipped the pills past his lips. The usual holding the mouth shut and plugging the nose made him swallow. "Great. Now I just have to get your boss to wake up so he can enjoy the fun too."

OOOOO

Her skin crawling off her body, Rachel headed for Jared's room. It was right beside Reid's so she would be close if she was needed. At least that was the logic as she stepped inside the tall young man's cell. He was lying sprawled in the bed, his left arm cast over his eyes, his right leg hanging over the edge of the bed. Now that Rachel saw him spread out, she realized the bed was really too short for him. No wonder he looked so damned uncomfortable.

Crossing the room, Rachel tried to lift his leg back up onto the bed. It was heavier than she'd assumed. After a couple of tries she finally gave up. She pulled the blankets off him and put one on the ground beside the cubby hole. Then she carefully pulled Jared's long frame off the bed and put him as gently as possible on the blanket. Mary wouldn't be happy but at least he looked less like a sardine packed in a can.

It took a moment to lay Jared's long frame out. Even with the blanket on the ground his head and feet hung over the edges. Damn but this kid was tall. While he was still on his back, Rachel sat him up enough to be able to dribble some water into his mouth. Dehydration was becoming a strong possibility.

Giving up on trying fitting Jared on the blankets, Rachel gently rolled him up onto his right side and pulled his legs up until they were on it. Then she placed the remaining blankets over his body. Having them unconscious all the time made it feel a little too much like playing with life sized dolls.

Trembling with fear and disgust, Rachel ran her fingers through the boy's chestnut brown hair. Oh how she wanted this to be over. That wasn't entirely true she knew. Otherwise she would have walked out of here while Mary was gone and found the authorities. But the idea of stopping the young men's suffering was very appealing.

With a sigh that came from the tips of her toes, Rachel stepped out of Jared's cell and made her way toward Matt's. He was still her favourite. As she passed by the door to Reid's cell she tried to ignore to grunts and moans coming from behind the door.

Tears running down her cheeks, Rachel slipped into Matt's room. He was lying on the floor again. Since Mary always abused Matt on the bed, the boy tried to escape it every chance he got. Even unconscious he knew what he didn't want to happen. Moving over to the boy huddled on the floor Rachel snagged the quilt and threw it over his naked body. Then she settled down behind him, on top of the quilt. She suddenly needed to keep a boundary between them. The last thing she wanted was to make him feel any more uncomfortable than he all ready was.

"I'm so sorry," Rachel whispered. She was curled up against his back, a protective arm thrown over his body. If Mary decided to extend her attention to Matt, Rachel wanted a little warning. The very last thing she ever wanted to see was what Mary did to him. Closing her eyes, Rachel tried to escape into oblivion. She was only partially successful.

OOOOO

"Shouldn't someone go check on Hotch?" Morgan suggested. It was now after six in the evening. The BAU members had ordered food in so that they could keep working but Morgan's thoughts kept moving to his Unit Chief. It was too unreal being here working without the dark haired, brooding older man around.

"I tried calling him twice but he hasn't answered the phone," Rossi stated. He had gone through what little information they had five times in the last few hours. It was still not making any sense. His head was starting to ache too. He was beginning to understand how Hotch was feeling.

"He could be sleeping," Prentiss stated. The 'but' on the end of the sentence lingered unsaid.

"If he's taken his pain killers when he should, Hotch probably is sleeping," Rossi added. He sat back from the files and ran his hands over his face again. The sheriff and his people were scouring the town, looking for any vehicles with recent damage to the front grill. It was a viable line of inquiry but Rossi didn't really expect anything to come from it. By now the unsub would have gotten rid of the vehicle if he had any sense at all.

"Still, man, someone should go check on him. He's pretty damned sick," Morgan pressed. He really just needed some air and to assure himself that Hotch was okay.

Before that line of thought could be continued, J.J. walked into the room. "The sheriff has found a car outside of the city limits. It has front damage done to the grill and what appears to be blood," she informed them. It was the first break they'd had. She just hoped desperately that it led them to Spencer. "There's a deputy waiting outside to drive you to the scene."

OOOOO

The car was in a secluded wooded area. The sheriff and his men had cordoned off the scene and then done a quick search of the immediate forest. The deputy driving Morgan, Prentiss and Rossi to the site pulled up as close as he could.

Bailing out of the car, the three FBI agents immediately began to assess the scene. The car was parked off the dirt road, hidden behind a small stand of bushes. The local PD had been lucky to notice it at all. As the BAU members walked toward it, they saw one of the deputies going through the glove compartment.

"According to this it's registered to a Donnie West," the deputy said as he held out the small slip of paper.

Finally, they had a name.


	14. Chapter 14

_Hello once again!! So far this story is coming to me pretty quickly so I figure, strike while the iron's hot! Enjoy! I hope! (Yeah, I know, too many exclamation marks. I'm in an excitable mood.)_

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

It was nearing twilight. It was getting harder to see what they were doing so the sheriff brought in portable flood lights. It may be a small town but they were well equipped. Unfortunately, in the decreased light, they accidently set it up right on top of the tire treads Mary and Rachel had left behind.

"How did you find this thing?" Morgan asked. He had stood by the road and knew that it couldn't be seen from there. It was nothing short of a miracle that the vehicle had been located at all.

"An anonymous caller," Sheriff Hicks responded. "My suspicion is that its Jared's brother Dave but I can't confirm it."

"Who is Donnie West?" Rossi asked. The sheriff seemed to know the man. He'd all ready sent some of his deputies to pick him up.

"Oh, he's a small time criminal. His most common charge has been public drunkenness with a few DUI's. I have to admit that I'm very surprised that he would have anything to do with this. The thing Donnie likes to do most is sit around drinking beer and trying to pick up women at bars," Sheriff Hicks replied. He was waiting for confirmation from his men that Donnie had been apprehended before they headed back to the station. There was more ground to cover here before they had the scene evaluated and he wanted to do that as quickly as possible.

"Kidnapping does seem to be out of his league," Rossi admitted. He looked over at Morgan. Walking the scene, he'd wound up at the trunk of the vehicle. The deputy still examining the inside of the car popped the trunk for him.

"Rossi, I have blood stains here," Morgan called out. Looking down by his feet, Morgan noticed several foot prints in the dirt. In the harsh light of the flood lights, he tried to figure out which ones belonged to the deputies and which ones belonged to the kidnapper. Bringing the car out here and dumping it just didn't make a whole lot of sense. Unless the unsub had someplace else to take them. Someplace out in the woods somewhere.

Rossi and Prentiss had come over to join Morgan by the trunk. The carpet that lined it had been a dark color but the splotches of darker color were clearly discernable. There were swatches of blood on the driver's side wall where their heads must have rested. Morgan's stomach churned with anger and fear. This is where Reid had been put after being hit by a car. Damn the unsub to hell.

"We need to go interview Donnie West," Morgan hissed through clenched teeth.

OOOOO

Hotch was in hell. He struggled against his bounds. He was lying on his right side which only made things harder. Every time he moved pain flashed through his shoulder. Sometime between being knocked unconscious and having water thrown on him here, his right shoulder had been dislocated. The pain was overwhelming in its intensity.

When Mary had knocked Hotch unconscious back by the SUV, she'd struck him on the back of the neck, not the skull. It had worked to overpower him but now the muscles on the back of his neck had seized. He was unable to lift his head because of the swelling at the site of impact and the reaction of the muscles around it. That left him lying on his right side, his head pointed toward the bed where Reid was being abused.

The woman was truly psychotic. There were other labels that fit her, including sadistic, but Hotch didn't have the energy to list them off. Mary had removed the blindfold once she knew he was awake but had left the gag in place. Out of all the pain going on through his body what hurt even worse though, were the images of Mary with Reid. When Hotch closed his eyes to not see what was happening, Mary would hurt Reid, causing him to cry out in pain.

The first time Hotch was overwhelmed and closed his eyes, she'd used a leather strap on Reid's chest and back. While she struck the helpless young man, a wicked smile had twisted her face. The sound of the leather striking Reid's bare skin would be indelibly etched into Hotch's mind. The muffled moans and groans only seemed to excite Mary.

The second time Hotch had closed his eyes she'd used a sex toy to sodomize Reid. The young genius had moaned and squirmed under her assault. Even drugged, he tried to get away. Still smiling that demented smile, Rachel used the thing on him until her hand was slick with blood and Reid was a whimpering mass. After that, Hotch stopped looking away.

The only thing Hotch was grateful for was the fact that Reid appeared to be completely unaware of what was going on. He wasn't sure what Mary was forcing the young man to swallow but he was clearly drugged up with something. With any luck at all Reid would never know for sure what had been done to him.

The sight of the woman riding Reid's pelvis like he was a mechanical bull had been burned into Hotch's mind forever. So was the image of Mary raping Reid with the toy. How could he have not seen how demented she was back in the bar? Clearly she was a highly functioning predator but this couldn't have been the first time she'd done this. She was just too focused on what she was doing. Too comfortable.

Bile rose in Hotch's throat. His shoulder was burning with pain while he tried to undo his bonds. In the cacophony of sensations Hotch's head had been virtually forgotten. Mary wasn't finished with Reid yet. Hotch kept his eyes open but retreated to the furthest reaches of his mind. Silently, he prayed for it all to be over soon.

OOOOO

Swirling in a world of mired in molasses, Reid was all too aware of what was happening to him. He could feel every touch of the woman's hot, dry fingers. He knew what she was doing to his body. The first time he'd retreated into the protective cocoon of his mind. This time, the pain was so intense and the humiliation so acute that he was unable to do that. Desperately he tried to wrench his body away from her but he could no more control his limbs than he could beat the woman senseless.

No, no, no, no, no. The words kept playing over and over in Reid's mind. He didn't want this to be happening. He didn't want this woman to be using his body for her pleasure with no regard at all to what he wanted.

Ignoring the pain, Reid retreated back into his statistics, letting the numbers numb him to what was going on around him. Once he was able to put distance between his mind and his body, Reid realized that while the woman was using his body, she wasn't touching the core of his being. He was never going to allow her to touch that part of him.

OOOOO

By the time the BAU members were half way back to town, one of the two deputies who'd been sent to retrieve the suspect called the sheriff on the radio. Apparently Mr. Donnie West had drunk himself into oblivion and was too drunk to be interrogated. They'd thrown him into the drunk tank for the night. It was the only option open to them.

As much as Derek wanted to get his hands on the man, he had to admit that trying to interrogate him while he was intoxicated would be counterproductive. The members of the BAU decided to go back to the hotel. They were all exhausted.

A deputy was to bring J.J. from the station while the others made their way there in Dave's car. Parking it in the parking lot, the oldest member of the BAU paused to stretch his back before following the younger members inside.

"Are there any messages?" Rossi asked at the front desk. He knew that if there had been one the clerk would have told him. It just went to show how very tired he really was.

"No, sir," the pretty young blond behind the counter stated a bright smile on her face. It wasn't every day that the hotel had FBI agents staying there so all of the staff knew who they were. The disappearances were tragic but having the agents here was very exciting.

"Thank you," Rossi said as he followed the other two to the elevator. The sheriff had all ready booked them two other rooms. They were in sequence with Hotch's room. The sheriff had also made sure to get a spare key for Rossi for Hotch's room. The man really could be damned efficient.

Stepping out of the elevator on the third floor, Rossi paused at Hotch's door while the other two made their way down the hall to their own rooms. The two women were sharing a room, as were Morgan and Rossi. Rossi pulled the hotel key out of his jacket pocket and swiped the lock. Just in case Hotch was still sleeping, he didn't want to wake him up by knocking.

The room was dark as Rossi paced down the short hallway. He noted that the bathroom door was open and then he stepped out into the room where the two beds were located. Even in the dim light of the bedside table, Rossi could see that both beds were empty.

Fear spiked through his system as Rossi took another look around. It was then he noticed Hotch's bed clothes tossed in a pile on the floor between the beds. Instinctively, Rossi pulled out his cell phone and speed dialled Hotch's phone.

It took half a ring for Rossi to register the fact that the corresponding sound was coming from under Hotch's bed. Leaving it ringing, he knelt down and pulled the bedspread up and out of his way. The backlight of Hotch's phone brightened as it rang yet again.

Picking it up, Rossi took a closer look around. Lying on the bedside table between the beds was the holster for Hotch's department issue weapon but the weapon itself was missing. Also on the table was Hotch's back up gun, still in its holster. His wallet was on the table where Rossi had seen him place it after changing into his pyjamas but his FBI ID was missing. Rossi immediately turned and left the room. He burst into the room he shared with Morgan. The younger profiler was sitting on one of the beds, the TV remote in his hand.

"Hotch is missing," Rossi stated, the words like ash in his mouth.


	15. Chapter 15

_Thank you ever so much for the incredible reviews! I love you all! Anyway, now that that mushiness is out of the way, this chapter is longer because it's going to have to hold you until the weekend. Real life is getting in the way. I hope you enjoy it!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Within ten minutes the hotel room was transformed into a crime scene. Rossi was hovering. It was the only thing he could think to do. Guilt was gnawing at his mind and nerves. He'd left Hotch alone knowing how ill he was. What had he honestly expected to happen? Well, naturally the thought that his superior was going to disappear had never entered his mind. But then, since coming to this pissant little town nothing had gone as expected.

"How could this have happened?" J.J. demanded as she rushed toward her colleagues. They were all standing in the hallway outside Hotch's room. Rossi may be hovering but he knew better than to inject himself and the others into the investigation. They were all too close to this one. First Reid, now Hotch.

"He was sick, weakened and drugged. Of all the times to take him, this would have been it," Rossi stated. Outwardly he was calm. His insides, though, were in turmoil.

"Yes, but who would know that?" J.J. pressed. Her blue eyes were wide with fear and concern. For his part, Morgan was leaning against the hallway wall, his arms crossed over his chest as if he were trying to hold himself in check. His instinct was to rush into the room and start tearing it part, looking for evidence. The crime scene techs might not appreciate the big man's help at the moment. They appeared to have everything in hand.

"That's a good question," Prentiss said, her dark brown eyes growing wide as the possibilities played through her mind. Who indeed would have known that Hotch was ill? Quickly she ran through the list of possibilities. "Hotch and Reid did some investigating before we got here but Hotch didn't start to become so ill until just before he called Rossi. How many places does that leave us?"

"The crime scene downtown and the bar," Rossi said, quickly following her line of thought.

"Did anyone see Hotch at the crime scene?" Prentiss asked.

"No," Rossi replied. "He was asleep in the car." It killed him to admit that. It only indicated just how ill Hotch had been and he'd ignored it.

Prentiss had to take a moment to digest that. "Then the only place the unsub could have seen him was at the bar," she said.

"Or driving past," Morgan added.

The sheriff walked out of the room. "This is going to take a while. It's a hotel room, there are prints everywhere. Why don't you go to your rooms and rest for a while. I will let you know if anything comes of this or if Donnie sobers up enough to interrogate," he said. The forty-something man was looking a little tired himself but he clearly had no intention of going to bed anytime soon.

The BAU members looked at each other. None of them felt much like sleeping but hanging around outside Hotch's room didn't seem like such a good idea either. Silently, Rossi headed toward his room. He was suddenly very tired.

OOOOO

Tiring of the now unresponsive Reid, Mary got dressed and stepped out of the room. Hotch's eyes were burning. He wasn't sure if it was from holding them open or because of what he'd just witnessed. After all the years of being a prosecutor and then as a member of the FBI and all the crime scene photos he'd poured over, Hotch would have thought he was immune to the violence of it all.

Being in the presence of it while it was happening was a completely different thing. Now that the woman had left the cell, Hotch allowed his eyes to close for the first time in what felt like a week. Behind his closed lids, the images started playing all over again. Hotch's eyes flew open. He wasn't sure if he was ever going to be able to sleep again.

The door to the cell opened and Mary stepped back in. In her hands were a large sketch book and several charcoal pencils. Pulling up one of the rickety old chairs, she set it down by Reid's bed. Singing to herself, Mary opened the book, pulled out her pencils and began to draw. It was one of the strangest things he'd ever seen. Hotch's stomach churned. The woman really was completely psychotic.

All Hotch could do was lie there on his dislocated shoulder and try to stay awake. He was afraid if he closed his eyes that Mary would feel the need to punish Reid again. He all ready had too much on his conscious to be responsible for yet another attack.

Finished with one page, Mary let it fall to the floor so she could move onto the next one. From where Hotch was lying, his neck still not willing to bend, he had a perfect view of what the crazy woman was drawing. The sketches themselves were actually quite good. It was the subject matter that disturbed Hotch. Mary was drawing various parts of Reid's body. His head, his arm, his legs, even his genitals but they were all disembodied. Not one of the pictures was of his whole body.

That was how she's able to do what she does to them, Hotch thought. She's disassociated the parts that give her pleasure. She was completely unaware that they were attached to a human being. Keeping Reid drugged only helped to strengthen her psychosis. While his mind followed that line of thought through its different tracks, Hotch fell asleep.

OOOOO

Whamp! Hotch shivered. It was the sound of leather striking flesh. Whamp! The shivering turned to trembling. Each of the contacts was followed by the sound of someone whimpering. Hotch couldn't move. He couldn't move. He couldn't open his eyes. All around him was darkness and the sounds.

A memory flashed through his mind. Whamp! The leather strap came down hard across Hotch's hands. The lashes that were left behind burned like a live match on his skin. Beyond the strap and Hotch's hands was his childhood home. Then his father was standing in front of him, towering over him, with the strap in his hand. Raising his arm, Hotch's dad brought the strap over his shoulder and put every ounce of strength he could into the blow. Whamp.

Tears sprang to Hotch's eyes. Biting his lower lip between his teeth, Hotch managed to not cry out or let the tears fall. That would only incite his dad to greater violence.

"You little bastard!" his dad was yelling while he wound up for another blow. "You're good for nothing. You know that? Why the hell did I ever let your mother keep you? I should have flushed you down the toilet while I had the chance!" Whamp.

Aaron felt so small and powerless. He knew his dad wouldn't be happy with just beating on his hands. He never was. Once he didn't get a rise out of Hotch, he'd graduate to using the strap on his shoulders, back and buttocks. But crying only made that happen sooner and with greater ferocity. Whamp!

Beyond his father's shoulder, Hotch could see his mom standing in the living room. She looked very upset but wasn't making a move to stop it. Against her side, his mom gripped his younger brother, Sean. She was hiding his face in her shirt and was covering his ears with her hands.

Hotch's dad had backed him into the closet under the stairs. This was the safest place to be. It meant his dad couldn't take a full swing when he got tired of hitting Hotch's hands. It was when his dad dragged him into the basement or his bedroom that Hotch knew he was in deep trouble. It would usually mean missing a day or two of school to let the worst of the red marks fade or three or four days if he had gym coming up. His dad wasn't stupid. He knew the marks would cause problems. It was easier to just let Hotch's teachers think he was a sickly child. Whamp!

"You little good for nothing! You're getting off on this aren't you? Well, we'll see about that!" his dad hissed. Dropping the strap to the ground, he caught hold of Hotch's thin arms and turned him around. He pulled up Aaron's shirt and pulled down his pants and underwear. His dad liked the sound of the strap against skin.

His head in the closet, his stinging hands braced against the shelves to keep from falling forward, Aaron waited for the inevitable. Now that he wasn't facing his dad, he could scrunch up his face and let the tears fall. So long as he remembered to wipe them before his dad saw them. Waiting for the first blow to fall, Aaron's back itched. He knew what was coming but nothing happened.

Aaron opened his eyes and found that he was back in the cell with Reid. It took a moment for the disorientation to pass. It took another moment to realize that Mary wasn't in the chair anymore. There were pages and pages of disembodied pictures scattered on the ground. Apparently the woman had been drawing for a while. Hotch was grateful that she hadn't noticed he was asleep. Or had he been? He wasn't entirely sure.

The door to the cell opened. Panic and fear burned through Hotch. What did the woman have in mind now? Desperately, Hotch wished he could turn his head to see the door. Then a woman stepped into his line of sight. It wasn't Mary. What the hell? Were there two of them?

This second woman was slightly younger than Mary and weighed a bit more. She studiously ignored Hotch while she moved to a motionless Reid. She had a basin in her hands and several towels thrown over her shoulder. That didn't track at all. Hotch wished he had the gag out of his mouth. He needed to ask questions, to figure out what was going on here.

The woman set the basin down in the chair Mary had vacated. Before she left, Mary had thrown a light sheet over Reid's lifeless body. The boy hadn't moved since she'd finished with the toy. Carefully, the new woman pulled the sheet back. Hotch heard her hiss when she saw the blood smeared on his buttocks.

"Damn her to hell," the woman growled. It was then she threw a glance over her shoulder to see if Hotch was awake. Just as quickly she turned back to Reid. She looked decidedly uncomfortable as she soaked a cloth in the basin and proceeded to gently clean the mess off of the insensate young man.

Hotch wasn't sure what he was watching. This made absolutely no sense. Clearly both women were involved in the kidnappings but so far only Mary had hurt Reid. This other woman appeared to be content to clean him up after Mary was done. That was a standard submissive personality but he'd never seen it in a duo of women before.

Once she was finished cleaning up Reid's back, the woman carefully rolled the gangly young man onto his back and quickly cleaned his front as well. That done, she rolled Reid onto his side, his back toward the interior of the cubby hole the bed was situated in. Collecting her supplies, the woman turned toward Hotch.

As casually as she could manage, she knelt down a short distance away from what he could reach with his legs if he tried to kick her.

"I'm really sorry about all this. It's my fault. I started it by bringing Matt home. I just wanted to let you know that your colleague isn't as bad off as it might have seemed. There was a lot of blood but not much damage. I'm so sorry that this happened. Are you okay?" the woman said. She was looking at the awkward angle of Hotch's shoulder and his neck. Neither one looked particularly comfortable.

Cursing the gag once again, Hotch tried to shake his head no. Pain sliced through his neck, bringing tears to his eyes. The woman noticed this but was still hesitant to get too close. Clearly she knew he was a federal agent and was giving him the respect he deserved. While that was mildly pleasing, it was also irritating as hell. How was he going to overpower either woman in his bound state?

"I'll see if I can help you but please be quiet. If Mary finds out I'm doing this, she'll probably try to hurt your associate again. I don't know how much more of this he can take," the woman stated. Seeing that he was trying to nod his head that he understood, she moved toward his head.

It was very unnerving when she moved out of Hotch's line of sight. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Then he felt her fingers touch the wound on his neck. The muscles spasmed, sending more waves of pain through him. Hotch hissed against the gag as she continued to palpate the area.

The BAU Unit Chief was seriously considering that this new woman was just as sadistic as Mary when he felt a cool, wet cloth gently applied to his neck. It increased the pain at first but then it began to soothe it. His eyes closed as the pain began to ebb. Even his head wasn't hurting nearly as much.

Hotch was completely unprepared for the woman to start checking his shoulder. It felt as if she'd dug daggers into the joint and was twisting them. Aaron didn't even bother to open his eyes. It wasn't like he could do anything to stop her anyway.

"It's dislocated," the woman said once she'd stopped pushing and pulling at it. "I'm going to have to untie you to try to reset it. I don't think I trust you well enough to do that. I'm going to have to go get Mary."

Before Aaron had a chance to try, somehow, to convince the woman otherwise, she was gone. He looked around the cell, as best he could, hoping to see something that might save them both. There was nothing. Same as every time he'd looked. Despair threatened.

OOOOO

Reid had been drifting in a netherworld where the pain and humiliation didn't matter. Logically, he knew it was because of the drugs the crazy woman was giving him but at the moment he didn't care much. Cool fingers touched his leg, lifting it and turning it slightly. Terror burned through Reid's mind and body.

'No, no, no, no, no, no,' kept rattling through the young genius's mind. He tried to pull away but his body didn't obey. Then something cool and wet was pressed against his butt. 'Oh, God, oh, God, not again!!'

Mentally Reid braced himself for another assault. It didn't come, all though, whatever this person was doing didn't make him feel all that great either. He knew it must be the other woman. The woman who cleaned up after the aggressor. He knew it had to be a female because the touches were too gentle, too hesitant to be a man. Reid really hated that she was cleaning the mess the other woman had made of him. It was almost as bad as the original assault.

Finished with that end of him, the woman turned her attention to the welts covering his back. She wiped them with a cool cloth and then applied some kind of an ointment from the smell of it. Whatever it was, it helped to take the sting off them. Then the woman rolled Reid onto his back. The pain from the welts was bad but the other was miniscule. Which was a relief.

The woman did the same with the welts on his front before rolling him onto his side. Reid could tell that she'd put his back toward the rear of the bed. That made him feel a little more secure when nothing else could. Damn he wished he could open his eyes or otherwise control his body. This must be what ALS is like. Reid had to fight rising panic. The last thing he needed was to lose control of his mind. It was the only thing he had at the moment.

While he fought his internal battle, Reid became aware of the fact that the woman was speaking to someone. They weren't alone. 'Your associate??' Who else was in here? What had they seen? The thought that it might be Morgan absolutely terrified Reid. Please don't let it be Morgan. Reid all ready felt like he was physically inferior to the much taller, bigger man. The last thing he wanted was for Morgan to have seen what had happened to him. Shame and humiliation turned his thoughts black. The drugs pulled him down and Reid knew no more for a while.

OOOOO

Hotch could hear a heated argument going on outside the cell door. Clearly Mary wasn't too keen on the idea of untying him. Hotch didn't blame her. Given half a chance he'd beat the woman senseless for what she'd done to Reid, irregardless of the consequences. His eyes were drawn to his subordinate. Reid hadn't moved from where the second woman had put him. She'd made sure to cover him up with the sheet and a blanket. For the first time Hotch noticed just how cool and damp the cell really was.

Mary and the other woman walked into the cell and Hotch's line of sight. "Rachel here wants to try to fix your shoulder. I'd be just as happy to leave it the way it is but the bitch can be quite insistent when she wants to be. So I guess we're going to do this. Just so you know, if you try anything fishy, I'm going to put a bullet in your friend's spine. How will he do as a paraplegic?"

There was no doubt in Aaron's mind that the woman would do it. Nodding his understanding, Hotch felt his stomach fall somewhere around his ankles as Mary pulled his own service revolver out of the back of her pants and pressed it against Reid's neck, just behind his ear.

"I'm sorry," Rachel said as the younger woman moved toward Hotch and then behind him. Pain exploded through his shoulder all the way up to his neck as the woman pulled on the ropes, trying to get him loose without cutting them. In an effort to deal with it, Hotch closed his eyes and hoped Mary didn't decide to punish Reid for it.

Hotch barely realized she'd undone the ropes when she placed her foot in his arm pit and the other one gently against his neck. She didn't even bother to try to prepare him for what followed. Rachel just started pulling on the arm with all her might. Hotch's free hand clawed at the gag while he screamed into it. His mouth felt like it was as dry as a desert and every time he screamed the piece of cloth wedged itself a little further inside.

There was a loud popping sound and the pain greatly diminished. The scream subsided just as Hotch got the gag out. Panting against the pain, he looked at Rachel was she knelt down in his line of sight. Without saying a word, she held out a bottle of water and helped him drink some of it.

"That's enough," Mary growled. "Tie him back up."

His arms free for the first time in what felt like an eternity, Hotch contemplated trying to use the younger woman as a hostage to get them both out of here. Then he looked over at Mary. She still had the gun trained on Reid. Rachel handed him the rest of the bottle of water. "Drink this while you can," she instructed. Then she pulled Hotch up into a seated position, placed his arm across his stomach and proceeded to wrap it against his trunk.

"We need your help," Hotch breathed. He tried to talk as quietly as he could between mouthfuls of water.

"Shut up!" Mary screamed. She pressed the gun harder into Reid's head. A small moan escaped his lips. "You think she's going to help you? She's the one who kidnapped young Matt to begin with. Until till then all of this was just daydreams, stories! She started it all!!"

Rachel ducked her head but not before Hotch could see her face turn a deathly shade of white. He tried to get her to look him in the eye but she refused. As quickly as she could she finished wrapping his arm against his side, effectively securing it to keep him from hurting it again but also enough that he couldn't pull it away.

Apparently Rachel didn't move fast enough for Mary, she left Reid's side, stepped up to Hotch and struck him across the face with the butt of his gun. Darkness claimed him.

OOOOO

Rachel fled the cell as soon as she could. She hated being so close to Mary and the FBI agents. They reminded her of just how wrong things had gotten. At the moment Mary was figuring out some way to secure the older agent now that she only had one hand to tie. The first thing she'd done, though, was to replace the gag.

Standing in the hallway, Rachel wasn't sure which direction to go in. Mary had been in Jared's room when she'd gone to find her. Rachel was afraid what she'd find in there. Absently she wondered how long it had been since the boys had had their valium. Well, she had no intentions of giving it to them. Things were going to play out however they were intended to from this point forward.

Steeling herself, Rachel stepped into Jared's cell. She was very relieved to find that Mary had been content to draw. There were sheets of drawing paper strewn about the floor. Not bothering to look at the pictures, Rachel covered Jared's naked body up with a sheet and blanket and retreated back to Matt's room. She was going to stay there for as long as Mary would let her.


	16. Chapter 16

_Hello again! I know I said the last chapter was going to have to do you for a while but this story just keeps playing through my mind. Even when I'm supposed to be working. Oops. Anyway, thank you all very much for your reviews! That may be a good part of why I can't get this story out of my head because I know you're waiting for me to write it!!_

_I hope you enjoy this chapter. It will all become clear (I hope) what's going on in the next chapter._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Despite all odds, Rossi actually managed to fall asleep. His dreams were troubled and not particularly restful but he was able to escape from reality for a little while. Then he was awakened by the ringing of a phone.

"David Rossi," he said into the hotel phone. Rossi wasn't exactly awake but it was a conditioned response after all these years of being an FBI agent.

"Hello, Agent Rossi. Sheriff Hicks here. I just wanted to let you know that Donnie West is awake. How long until I can expect you and the other agents at the station?" the sheriff informed him.

"We will be there in half an hour," Rossi replied. He was all ready sitting up in his bed and throwing his legs over the side. On the bed next to his, Morgan had all ready gained his feet and was headed for the bathroom. Rossi hung up the phone and then dialled the women's room number. He spoke to Prentiss and told her what was going on.

True to his word, Rossi and the other three agents strode into the police station. If Hicks hadn't known any better, he would have had the impression that all four of them had had a full night's sleep. Rubbing his eyes with his knuckles, Hicks turned and led them to the one and only interrogation room. It also doubled as the broom closet but the deputies had pulled everything out but the spare table and two chairs.

Looking still very hung over, Donnie West was sitting on the chair on the far side of the table, his head resting against the cool surface. The agents stood outside the door for a minute, taking in the suspect's body language.

"He was probably too drunk to have kidnapped Hotch," Derek stated. The thought had been playing through his mind all night.

"We're not sure about when Hotch was kidnapped. West could have done that and then gotten drunk. Has Garcia had a chance to look over the security videos from the hotel?" Rossi stated. He wasn't particularly hopeful about the videos. The system was old and the tapes used far too often. When he'd tried to watch it back at the hotel there had been a single moment of clarity during which he could see the back of Hotch's head. The rest of it had been obscured by static. The tape was magnetized after repeated usage. He'd sent them to Garcia anyway. If anyone could clean up the images, it would be Penelope.

"No. I checked on the way over here. She's less than happy to be stuck back at Quantico," Morgan said. He'd been in the back of the car and couldn't handle sitting still for the whole ten minute ride to the station. Breaking the news to Garcia had been hard. Even though Rossi had done it right after calling the sheriff, it was still like breaking the news to her again when Morgan had talked to her. She was still in a mild case of shock. He supposed they all were to some degree.

Without saying another word, Rossi stepped into the room. Sluggishly, Donnie lifted his head off the table and looked up at the older man, his eyes bloodshot.

"What the hell am I doing here?" Donnie demanded in a quiet voice. Rossi had the impression that he was nursing the mother of all hangovers and was trying to avoid any loud noises. Deliberately, he moved over to the other chair and dragged it across the floor before sitting on it.

Donnie winced but recovered quickly. He glared at Rossi, waiting for a response to his question. He wound up waiting for a long time, or so it seemed. Finally, Rossi leaned forward the looked the man in the eyes.

"We need to know about a four door, dark blue Chrysler Le Baron registered to you. We found it out in the woods. What was it doing there?" Rossi asked.

"How the hell would I know?" Donnie growled. "You bastards took my license away months ago. Too many DUI's."

"So who was driving it?" Rossi pushed.

"I lent it to my brother, Danny, or my sister, Mary, whichever one needs it at the time. I don't know which one is driving it right now but if it's in the woods chances are that would be Danny. He loves to go hunting even though he never seems to catch anything," Donnie replied. "I think he goes out there mostly to smoke weed and stuff."

"Where would Danny go if he were in the woods?" Rossi asked.

"I don't know. It's his thing, not mine. You said there was blood in the car. Does that mean he finally got something?" Donnie asked. It would have shocked him if Danny had actually killed an animal. Donnie didn't think he had it in him. It's one thing to kill things on the computer screen, quite another to watch their eyes grow dim.

"Preliminary tests indicate that the blood in your car is human."

"Danny shot himself? Somehow that doesn't surprise me," Donnie stated, a satisfied smirk on his pale face.

Rossi was finding it a little hard to concentrate while sitting across the table from the man. Alcohol was still coming out of his pores. He stank to high heaven. Between that and the smell of unwashed body, he found it hard to direct Donnie into the direction he was hoping to go.

"Not unless he shot himself and then climbed into the trunk," Rossi countered. "What about your sister? Would she have a reason to be out in the woods?"

"Mary? No, the most important thing in her world is that damned bar. She won't even let me in there during business hours because I become disruptive," Donnie said.

"Which bar would that be?" Rossi asked even though he had a pretty good idea which one.

"Mar's Bar. But she wouldn't have caused anything like this. She doesn't spend much time thinking about boys. I think her and her friend from high school were lovers. I don't think she swings that way," Donnie stated with some authority. Mary hadn't been particularly interested in him and his brothers. Not that that had stopped them. Her friend from school, Rachel was her name he thought, had been a lot more fun.

There was a knock on the window, indicating that one of his members or one of the sheriff's people wanted to talk to him. Rossi stood up and headed out the door. Donnie watched him go and then put his head back on the table. He wanted to grab what sleep he could.

"What?" Rossi asked when he stepped outside. It came out somewhat sharper than he'd intended but there it was.

"We have Danny's address. I was wondering if you wanted to accompany your people and mine during the raid," Sheriff Hicks asked. He had his doubts about Danny West doing this. The kid was small time but the thought of it being Mary was even more ridiculous. The woman was an upstanding local citizen. It just didn't make any sense.

"Yes. Let's go."

OOOOO

The house was underwhelming in appearance when the four vehicles pulled up in front of it. It was on the outside of town. It was dilapidated and surrounded with various cars in disrepair. If it had been within city limits it would have been condemned.

Climbing out of the vehicles, the BAU members and the deputies fanned out. There was no vehicle in the driveway but that didn't mean Danny wasn't home. Nodding to the BAU team, Sheriff Hicks led them up to the front door. He waited until he was sure his men had the rest of the house surrounded. Then he banged on the door, hard.

"Danny West, this is the sheriff's department. Open the door and step outside with your hands up," the sheriff shouted. He was standing beside the door, the BAU were on the other side. Just in case the kid decided to open fire at the door. Sheriff Hicks wasn't even sure if Danny had any weapons but it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibilities.

There was no response. The sheriff knocked again and repeated the instructions with similar results.

Losing patience, Morgan stepped forward and kicked the door in. Before he had a chance to step inside, a short, scrawny young man stepped out, a large rifle in his hands. His dark eyes were frantic as he swung the weapon back and forth. His lips were pulled back over his teeth, baring them in anger or fear, it was hard to tell.

"Danny, put the gun down," Sheriff Hicks ordered. He tried to step in front of the kid. He didn't believe he'd actually pull the trigger. Apparently the BAU had different expectations. Rossi pulled him back so Morgan could have a clear shot.

"Get away! I don't want to use this but I will!" the kid shouted back. He had the rifle aimed in the general direction of the four people on his porch. He didn't really care which one. He just wanted them off his property. There were far too many people just walking onto his property of late.

"Danny, calm down," Sheriff Hicks tried to calm him but Danny ignored him and pulled the rifle up to his shoulder. Morgan didn't give him anymore time. With some regret, he aimed his gun at the kid. When he saw him begin to pull the trigger, Morgan fired.

Danny crumpled to the ground, a blossom of blood spreading over his white t-shirt, right over his heart.

OOOOO

A black muscle car pulled up to the scene. It had been half an hour since the fatal shooting. In all that time, no one had found anything to explain Danny's actions. The crime scene tape was strung up but Dave ignored it as he came striding up to it and through it on his way to where Morgan and Rossi were standing on the porch. Prentiss was inside, helping with the examination of the contents of the house.

"Why are you wasting your time here?" Dave demanded. The dark blond haired man was thrumming with anger. His blue eyes had turned a darker shade in his emotional state.

"We are following leads," Morgan stated. The younger man was beginning to wear a little thin.

"Well, you're following the wrong ones," Dave growled. "Danny had nothing to do with this."

OOOOO

Mary was at it again. That left Rachel wandering. Mary had chosen Matt as her prey for the moment.

Rachel's first stop was Jared's room. Unsure of what to do with herself, Rachel picked up the pictures and placed them on the table. She didn't even bother to look at the sketches. They didn't interest her in the slightest. Picking up a glass of water she'd left on the table earlier, she moved over to Jared.

The tall young man was still lying on the floor. It appeared to be the most comfortable for him. Well, as comfortable as any of these young men could get with Mary around. He was curled up on his side, his back pressed against the wall behind him. Rachel had the feeling that all three boys were going to feel the need to have their backs against a wall for some time before they would be able to sleep. It was a position she was all too familiar with.

Kneeling down at Jared's head, Rachel lifted it and turned it slightly. Then she helped him drink some of the liquid. When half the glass was gone, she pulled it from his lips. If she gave him too much, chances were that if she gave him too much he'd just throw it back up.

The young man's face was pale and sweaty. Mary wasn't sure if it was because of his injuries, which were numerous, or because of withdrawal. She hadn't given him his valium. Rachel wasn't sure if Mary had but she hoped not.

Rachel covered young Jared with another blanket. She brushed his long, chestnut hair out of his eyes and then left the room. She'd put it off long enough.

Pacing down the hallway, she stepped into Reid and Hotch's room. She hadn't been there since resetting Aaron's shoulder. The first thing she noticed was that Mary had tied Hotch's good arm against his body. It definitely worked. He looked kind of like he was trapped in a straight jacket. She felt sorry for him but didn't dare loosen the ropes or undo the gag. It would go badly for both her and the FBI agent.

Mary had left Hotch lying on his good side but he was sleeping soundly anyway. Trying to not disturb him, Rachel moved over to Reid. She wanted to check his life signs, just to see how he was doing.

As soon as her fingers touched his neck to check his pulse, Reid whimpered softly and tried, unsuccessfully, to pull away from her. Rachel didn't blame him. The young FBI agent must be terrified that Mary was back. Shushing him, she got the number she needed. It broke her heart to hear the young man make such a pathetic sound. He was an FBI agent. He was trained to use fire arms and defend himself. He shouldn't have been brought down this low just because Mary had thought he was handsome. But then, Rachel had done the same thing to Matt.

The guilt was overwhelming for a few minutes. Tears streamed down Rachel's face while she had trouble drawing breath around the huge lump in her throat. She ran her fingers through Reid's dark brown hair, trying to get it out of his face. Reid mumbled and shifted, trying to get away from her.

Feeling like the scum of the earth, Rachel glanced over at Hotch. His dark brown eyes were staring at her intently. She knew he was trying to ask her to take the gag off. Rachel wasn't sure she wanted to hear what he had to say. But she owed the man something. She owed them all some form of contrition.

Her eyes were drawn down to the young man lying in front of her. He looked so young and vulnerable. While Hotch just looked angry and intense. While she didn't blame the older agent, she tried to figure out a way to remedy it without untying the man. Finally, an idea came to her.

Stepping forward again, Rachel caught hold of Reid and carefully picked him up. He was tall but didn't weigh much. By the time she'd crossed half of the room, though, her arms and legs were beginning to tremble. She wasn't as strong as she'd thought.

With each shuffling foot covered, Rachel could feel Hotch's eyes burning into her. He didn't understand what she was doing. Hell, she didn't understand what she was doing either. It just seemed like the right thing to do. Finally reaching Hotch, she gently laid Reid, still wrapped up in a blanket and sheet, on the ground directly in front of him. Then she pushed Reid's back up against Hotch's body.

Suddenly feeling silly, Rachel quickly stood up and exited the room. Mary was going to freak when she saw what she'd done.

OOOOO

There was a familiar scent swirling around his head. Reid tried to process where he'd been exposed to it before. The drugs were not as strong any more but they still polluted his body and mind, making thinking and moving very difficult. The scent became stronger as someone warm moved closer against his back.

Giving his current situation, Reid half expected fear to spike through his system but it didn't. That familiar scent belonged to Hotch. His boss was lying behind him. Reid wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that. It meant that chances were that Hotch had been the one to witness his humiliation. That hurt in ways he wasn't currently able to process.

A sob broke through Reid's drug induced paralysis. In reaction, Hotch tried to move even closer against him. His Unit Chief's movements were uncoordinated and hampered in some way. Reid supposed that had to make some kind of sense. Otherwise, Hotch wouldn't have sat still for what had been done to his subordinate. There was no doubt in Reid's mind that Hotch would have done everything physically possible to prevent the attack.

Concentrating all of his dwindling strength, Reid tried to force his unresponsive body to roll over. Despite the terror and humiliation or because of them, Reid had the sudden need to be facing Hotch. He felt the need to be held, if only for a few moments, by someone who didn't want to hurt him.

Rolling onto his back sucked all the air out of Reid's lungs. The pain was excruciating when the welts from the belt touched the ground. It nearly stopped Reid in his efforts. But staying where he was, wasn't going to help matters any. With strength of will Reid hadn't known he possessed, he rolled up onto his other side. His cheek came in contact with the crook of Hotch's neck. Not sure of what his boss's reaction was going to be to the intimacy, Reid almost held his breath. Then Hotch's head moved closer against his cheek.

It was then that Reid realized that Hotch was gagged. That helped to explain why they were still here. If Hotch had been able to use his powers of persuasion, they would have been free long ago. Reid unconsciously moved his arms to pull his boss a little closer, as if Hotch's warm, strong presence would be enough to make all of this go away.

Hotch tried to not move even when Reid's hands got a little too close to parts of his body the younger man had no right touching. He knew that Reid was very drugged and not in complete control. All Hotch really wanted to do at the moment was wrap his arms around the younger man and protect him from the world. It was the same reaction he had to his son, Jack. Somehow that didn't surprise him given what he'd all ready been forced to witness.

In his frantic motions, Reid accidently pulled the corner of the gag out of Hotch's mouth. Relief flowed through Hotch as he managed to spit the gag out. Now they might have a chance.


	17. Chapter 17

_A/N: I'm hoping desperately that this is all making sense. It was the main reason I was hesitant to write in this genre. I'm afraid that what makes sense to me doesn't make sense to anyone else. Anyway, please let me know if anything seems completely out of character or just plain wrong. I appreciate the advice, believe me!!_

_Also, I know that in the last chapter that Derek wouldn't have killed Danny without trying to talk him down first but that would have just slowed things down. As would capturing him and interrogating him. It made sense at the time!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"Are you all right, Reid?" Aaron asked. His voice was hoarse from lack of use and dehydration. He knew it was a stupid question. Of course Reid wasn't all right. But was more the sound of his voice, not what he said, that his subordinate needed to hear.

Against his neck, Aaron felt Reid trying to speak, to answer him. These women really had the young genius drugged. The fact that Reid had all ready had trouble with drugs made Hotch a little apprehensive. Well, Reid had beaten it once. Hotch could only hope that he had the strength to do it again.

"It's okay. We're going to get out of here. Can you reach my arms and undo the ropes?" Hotch asked. He was staring down at the top of Reid's head. The boy's brown hair was plastered against his skull in long waves. Yet he felt cold to the touch. Flailing around somewhat drunkenly, Reid tried to get his arms to cooperate while he attempted to work on the ropes. All he really wanted to do at the moment was get the hell out of here. He'd deal with the after effects later.

Pride burned in Aaron's heart while he watched the young man struggle. Lesser men would have curled up in a ball and stayed there after being used the way Reid had been. He knew that his subordinate was running on fumes but at least he was still trying to get them both out of here.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Mary demanded from the doorway. Aaron had been concentrating on Reid so hard he hadn't heard the door open. His neck finally allowed him to look up at the door where the woman stood shaking with anger.

"You haven't gone too far yet, Mary. Stop this now and we can help you salvage the rest of your life," Hotch said, trying to distract the woman from Reid. He felt Reid tense up at the sound of the woman's voice. The young genius was starting to hyperventilate as fear overwhelmed his system.

"Shut up!" Mary shouted. She bent down to strike Aaron in the head again but he managed to move out of the way. Growling like a wild animal, Mary caught hold of Reid by the arm and pulled him away from Aaron and threw him several feet behind her. Still raging, she made as if to try to hit Aaron again. When he moved to protect his head, she brought her foot back and kicked him with every ounce of strength she had, right in the crotch.

Air whooshed from Aaron's lungs as the new pain assaulted his senses. Then vomit erupted from his mouth as his body reacted. He didn't have a chance to recover before Mary was on him. Wailing on any part of Aaron's body that she could reach, Mary was shrieking like a banshee.

Beyond Mary's legs, Aaron could just make out Reid. The young man was trying to move, to get to his feet to come to his rescue. But his body was still polluted and only marginally responsive. All Reid managed to do was to roll himself over onto his right side so he was facing the Unit Chief. Reid's brown eyes grew big as he watched the woman continue to spiral out of control.

The blows rained down on Hotch's head, shoulders, stomach and legs with frantic strength. The first one to his face had opened the narrow gash Mary had left on his cheek with the gun butt. He'd forgotten about it amid everything else that was going on. He'd drawn his knees up against his throbbing genitals. The last thing he needed was for the woman to kick him there again. Grunts and groans were the only sounds he issued. Instinctively Aaron knew that if he spoke it would send the woman further over the edge.

"Mary! Stop it!" Rachel yelled from the door way. When she didn't get a reaction, Rachel waded in, catching hold of the other woman from behind and pulling her away from the senior FBI agent. Rachel had to use every bit of strength she had to keep the thinner woman from breaking free and continuing her assault.

"What's going on?" Rachel asked while she continued to step backward. She had no idea, at first, what had caused the severe response from Mary. Then she noticed the bloody lip on Aaron's face while he drew in huge lungfulls of air to catch his breath. She wasn't sure how she felt about Aaron not being gagged. The thought of the recriminations that would spew forth from him made her shiver.

"The bastard was trying to untie him!" Mary yelled while she struggled to get out of Rachel's hold. Hearing the man speak had been too much for her. She liked her men mute and compliant.

"Do you blame him?" Rachel responded. She glanced down at Aaron. The man had his eyes closed while he tried to recover. His face was as pale as a sheet, which made the blood stand out even worse.

"What the hell is the kid doing over here anyway? Haven't you given him his pills?" Mary demanded. When she'd walked into the room she could barely believe her eyes. How did the kid manage to get all the way over to where the older man was lying? He should have been so doped up that he shouldn't have even known the older man was here.

"No. I haven't," Rachel admitted. She waited for the explosion. Nothing happened. Mary finally stopped struggling and stood quietly trying to catch her own breath. "You have all the pills."

OOOOO

Within five minutes, the two women had Reid back in his bed and a new pill forced down his throat. Between the swirling in Hotch's head, throbbing of his genitals and stinging of the various blows in recent minutes he needed a little time to recover before he could continue the fight. Aaron was forced to turn his head and vomit again.

Rachel reluctantly put the gag back on Aaron but not before Mary forced him to take one of his pain pills. He only put up a token resistance. He didn't have the energy to do anything else. Rachel did take the time to move him away from where he'd been sick, not once but twice.

"How much longer are we going to keep this up?" Rachel asked as she looked into Hotch's pain filled brown eyes. Behind her, she could hear Mary doing something with Reid. From the small whimpers, she knew Reid didn't appreciate the attention. Closing her eyes, Rachel took two deep, calming breaths before she turned around.

"Why, are you tiring of your young friend?" Mary responded. Reid was lying on his back. Knowing what his injuries were, Rachel understood why he was shifting around. But she knew that wasn't the only reason. Mary was standing in front of him, her hand under the blankets. Even from where she was standing, Rachel could see that she was happily fondling the thin young man. His face was screwed up in pain or disgust while he continued to try to get away from her cruel ministrations.

"How is this going to end, Mary? Are you going to kill them?" Rachel pushed. She was tired. None of this seemed as bad as it had before. Now she was just feeling the need to get the hell out but she couldn't leave the men behind. Not with Mary.

"Only if they make me," Mary responded.

"Leave him alone!" Rachel shouted. She couldn't stand the expression on his young face or the sounds he was making any more. They were like snakes in her stomach, twisting and churning in truly awful ways.

"Why? Do you want to play with him?" Mary asked with a completely innocent expression on her face. When she didn't get a rise out of her younger companion, Mary hissed and pulled her hand out from under the blanket. Rachel really was a stick in the mud. "Fine, I have to go into work today anyway. I'll bring back some food when I'm done."

"You do that," Rachel responded. She didn't really care about the food. None of the men were eating much in their drugged stupors. As soon as Mary was gone, she was going to heat up some more broth and try to get them all to drink some. If any of them died because of this, Rachel would never be able to forgive herself.

"I'll park the SUV somewhere else when I come back. No need to leave too many tire tracks out here," Mary said. It was really quite eerie. The woman was acting as if the outburst just a few short minutes ago had never happened.

"All right," was all Rachel could think to say. She just wanted Mary gone.

Humming quietly to herself, Mary casually left the room. She paused in each of the other rooms, long enough to force drugs down the young men's throats. Then she left. Her bar awaited her.

OOOOO

"What the hell are you talking about?" Morgan demanded. The other law enforcement professionals had all stopped what they were doing to stare at the angry, blond haired man.

"You just killed that kid for nothing. He had nothing to do with any of this," Dave growled. He couldn't keep the disgust out of his voice. Were these guys really this useless? No, that wasn't fair. They didn't have all the facts. Neither did he, otherwise he couldn't need their help. It burned the hell out of him that he couldn't do this alone.

"If it wasn't Danny, then who did this?" Sheriff Hicks asked. He glanced down at the young man the coroner was peeling off the porch.

"Mary," was Dave's simple answer. He could have laughed at the shocked expressions on everyone's face. Rossi was the one who recovered the fastest. That made a twisted sort of sense.

"Why would Mary kidnap two federal agents and your brother?" Sheriff Hicks pushed. He couldn't see Mary West doing any of this. It would be completely out of character for her.

"I'm not sure," Dave admitted. "But I do know that she slipped me and one of her female patrons a Viagra the night Jared disappeared. Or else that was the best sex I've ever had with the plainest woman I've ever slept with."

"What are you talking about?" Prentiss asked. That had come out of left field.

"The night Jared went for his walk and disappeared, Mary bought me and a woman a beer, trying to set us up. Within twenty minutes of the first swallow I was the horniest I've ever been in my life. So was the woman. We spent the whole night going at it like rabbits. If we hadn't, I would have noticed that Jared was missing right away. She wanted me out of the picture so she could take him," Dave explained. Despite all Dave's bravado, a little bit of a blush coloured his cheeks. It was embarrassing to admit where he was while this crazy woman was driving over his brother and then driving away with him.

"Mary did that? Do you have any proof?" Sheriff Hicks didn't want to believe it. Not after all the evenings he'd spent at the bar. He didn't drink but he enjoyed the company too much to not hang out there. It wasn't just Mary but it was also the other regulars that spent their time there.

The BAU members were looking at each other. It didn't make sense but it did at the same time. It was why they couldn't pin down a profile. They were looking for men. Morgan watched as the coroner pushed young Danny West's body by them on his way to the van. 'Please, God, don't tell me I just killed an innocent man,' played through his mind.

"No, I don't. I just know what happened. I found that car out in the woods and have spent the last several hours trying to locate where she's holding my brother and your agents. It's a pretty big, damned forest and very thick in places. I can't cover it fast enough, I need your help with equipment that I don't have. Like a helicopter," Dave stated.


	18. Chapter 18

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

The BAU's first reaction was to check the man's story. It didn't take long. Garcia had spent hours trying to track down Reid and Jared's cell phones, trying to pinpoint the area where they were. Using every trick she'd learned, she'd found that Reid and Jared's cell phones went completely dead at the location of the accident. Well, it wasn't an accident because the woman had done it deliberately. How dare she lay a finger on young Reid? And Hotch? She didn't even want to go there. The thought of either member of the BAU being hurt in any way set her blood boiling.

Once Morgan put Garcia on the scent of them being in the forest, she spent several hours poring over satellite photos, trying to see where the people in the car went to no avail. The images were in stop motion so in one image the car appeared, the next one showed the doors open but there wasn't anyone in the frame. The following frame showed the doors closed but again there wasn't anyone in them to indicate their direction of travel. The trees were so thick that she couldn't see anything beyond the car but the forest canopy. With a heavy heart, she relayed her failed results and then cut the connection. How were they going to find Reid and Hotch in there? It was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

OOOOO

As soon as Mary left, Rachel heated up the broth and spent the next while getting the three men to drink it. She had to take the time to clean Matt up before she fed him. Mary had been having her fun again. Rachel was grateful that she'd found and hid the sex toy. It was bad enough that Mary had raped Reid with it. She didn't want to take any chance of her doing it to the others.

It killed her to have to clean up more wounds on young Matt's smooth skin. The first bruises had finally begun to fade, only to be replaced with newer, darker ones. The boy trembled under her ministrations and tried to pull away from her. When he couldn't, he started to whimper, ever so softly. It turned Rachel's stomach.

Once she was finished with Matt, she returned to Reid and Hotch's room. Rachel wanted to feed Reid and maybe Hotch. The only problem was that to feed the senior FBI agent she'd have to take the gag out again. She decided against that idea. She knew that if anyone was going to talk her into helping them it was him. Despite everything she wasn't quite ready to turn her family's life upside down by being charged with kidnapping.

Stepping into the room, she glanced at Hotch, who was still lying on the dirt floor, tied up. His brown eyes followed her, it was a little disconcerting. Ignoring him as best she could, Rachel moved over to Reid, a mug of broth in her hand. It was easier to feed it to them from a mug than with a spoon.

Setting the mug down on the chair, Rachel quickly checked him over, just to make sure Mary hadn't done anything too bad under the blankets. As quickly as she could, she pulled the blanket back and did a cursory exam. Mary had left angry, red marks around Reid's genitals but the marks hadn't broken the skin. Deciding there was nothing she could do for that, Rachel put the blankets back and set about dribbling broth into his mouth.

OOOOO

"We've scanned the whole area with Infrared. There are no heat signatures that don't belong to animals or random groups of hunters. What now?" Sheriff Hicks asked. He knew the forest was dense but it was still very frustrating. He'd thought for sure that the Infrared would show them where the young men were being held. It didn't make any sense at all that it hadn't.

"You didn't find any unaccounted vehicles out there?" Rossi asked. He, Morgan and Prentiss had spent the last few hours sitting in helicopters, trying to help with the search. Even now he could tell that Sheriff Hicks still didn't believe that they were looking for Mary. The joys of small town living.

"No. We've investigated everything we found out of the ordinary on the scope but so far we've come up empty," Hicks said. He ran a hand over his face. It had been a very long time since he'd had any kind of sleep. It didn't look like he was going to be getting any anytime soon, either. How could he have been so wrong about Mary?

"It is a few hours before dark. Can we keep searching once we lose the sunlight?" Morgan asked. He kept pushing away the thought that he'd killed that kid for nothing. If he'd been completely innocent he wouldn't have come at them with the rifle to begin with.

"It'll be more dangerous but the pilots are willing to keep going as long as they can," Hicks responded. They'd set up a command post at the place where Donnie's car had been found. It seemed like the most likely place to start.

"Don't worry, we'll find them," Hicks added.

"Maybe we should go looking for Mary. The bar should be open by now," Morgan suggested. He hated sitting still. The pilots of the helicopters had co-pilots that watched the scanners but it was better than waiting back here. He hated the woods, especially when it as getting dark.

"I've all ready sent deputies over to the bar. She told one of her experienced workers that she wasn't feeling well and hasn't made an appearance since. I hate to say it but I'm beginning to think that Dave is right about her. There are just too many coincidences," Hicks said. There was a deep sadness beginning in him that he was trying desperately to ignore. If he couldn't trust his friends to not be criminals, who could he trust?

"The more I look at the facts, the closer I get to agreeing with him as well," Rossi admitted. The facts were beginning to fall into place. It did make sense that the men would have been kidnapped by a woman. It just didn't occur all that often.

"We have her vehicle. How far can she go?" Prentiss asked. She was looking around the forest now that the shadows were getting longer. It killed her to think that Hotch and Reid were out here somewhere. She hoped desperately that they at least had some shelter to protect them from the impending night. Exposure was going to be the least of their problems.

OOOOO

Rachel finished feeding Reid the mug of broth. Absently she wiped the splash over off Reid's mouth before turning toward Hotch. The older man was laying quietly, his eyes closed but she could see them tighten in pain every few minutes. Mary had hurt him too. Damn it.

"I don't know what to do," Rachel said into the air. "I never intended for any of this to happen. Now I don't know how to stop it without hurting my family. My parents and my brothers will be shocked by all of this. This isn't the way I was raised."

Looking at Aaron's battered face Rachel found that he was watching her. If anyone was going to make this better it would be him. But even he couldn't stop her from being charged and put on trial for what she'd done and for what she'd allowed to happen. That was as it should be. She just hoped to prevent her family any more embarrassment than they were all ready going to suffer.

Taking a deep breath, Rachel stepped toward Aaron. She saw the apprehension appear in his dark eyes as she got close. He was ready to try to protect himself but he was still a little nervous about her being this close. Just because Rachel hadn't hurt anyone so far didn't mean she wasn't going to.

"I'm going to remove the gag," Rachel stated as she crouched down by his head. Aaron's right eye was turning a nasty black from the blow with the gun. The cut below it had finally stopped leaking blood but she had the feeling that wasn't what was causing him to grimace. Rachel wasn't sure she wanted to find out everything Mary had done to him.

Still watching the woman closely, Hotch nodded his head. Thanks to the damp, cool clothes Rachel had put on the back of his neck, Hotch was beginning to get some mobility back that didn't result in a head-splitting pain. Rachel disappeared from his line of vision for a moment. Then he felt her pulling the hated gag away from his mouth.

"Thank you," Hotch said. He wasn't sure how far to push the woman. Not yet anyway. The fact that Mary had gone to work should work for them. It gave him time to build trust with Rachel. Clearly she was the more lucid of the two.

"I'm going to get you some water and something to eat. Don't bother yelling, we're underground. No one can hear you," Rachel said as she quickly left the room.

Trying to ignore the embers burning in his groin, Hotch took the opportunity to try to reach Reid. The young genius had rolled onto his side now that Rachel had fed him and was sleeping restlessly. Hotch had the feeling that Reid was going to find sleep a precious commodity for the next while. He just hoped Reid agreed to begin counselling after this. Hotch figured he might have to consider it himself. The images of Mary with Reid were still burned into his conscious and unconscious mind.

Moving turned out to be beyond him. Hotch was left panting on the floor within minutes. Between his shoulder, his head and his groin, Hotch just couldn't manage it. Silently he berated himself for being so weak.

"Spencer," Hotch called out quietly. He figured Rachel would be all right with him trying to reach his subordinate but at this moment he wasn't willing to take anything for granted. Anxiously he watched Spencer's pale face for any response at all.

"Hotch?" Reid eventually called back. His voice was quiet and slightly slurred. Mary had drugged him and it was beginning to take effect again. He was having a very hard time staying in the here and now. He kept floating away.

"Stay with me, Reid," Hotch said in response.

The door opened and Rachel stepped inside, a plate with sandwiches and two bottles of water in her hand. She tried to hide her surprise that Hotch had moved but she wasn't very successful. Setting the food down, she carefully moved toward the senior FBI agent and helped him sit up properly. Then she did something completely unexpected, she undid the ropes holding Hotch's good arm against his body.

"We were going to get caught sometime. I'm just not willing to let her hurt anyone else," she explained as she handed the plate and one of the bottles of water to Hotch. For a moment Hotch contemplated bringing to woman to her knees and trying to tie her up. That thought vanished though. He was one armed, his other arm was still practically numb from being dislocated, and couldn't tie her up if he wanted to.

"Where are we?" Aaron asked. His back was propped up against a chest but he was quickly wearing out. Damn but Mary could hit when she was angry. He could feel bruises popping up all over his torso, stomach and legs. He put the water down and began on the first sandwich.

"Under a cabin in the woods," Rachel replied as she too sat on the floor with her back against the dilapidated chair. "Mary and I found this place when we were kids. It was the only place in our worlds where we knew we were safe. It's wrong that this same place has become hell for you and the others."

"You're right. That is wrong," Hotch stated. The first sandwich was all ready gone and he was onto the other. His mind was trying to run with a profile of this woman. Clearly she was a survivor of abuse in her childhood. That much was obvious. But everything else was blurry and hard to follow. The pain medication was making it hard to think. "How old were you when it started?"

The look on the woman's round face confirmed Hotch's suspicions. The color drained from her face while she looked at him. Her brown eyes were searching his, trying to decide what to tell him. Then she ducked her head. "Old enough to be out of diapers but not old enough to dress myself," was her quiet response.

"What happened?" Hotch was afraid to push too hard but if Rachel trusted him enough to tell him what happened then she might trust him enough to get them all out of here. The second sandwich was gone but Hotch's stomach wasn't so sure it wanted the sustenance there.

"It was nothing. Not compared to what Mary's been doing to these boys," Rachel said. She still wasn't looking at him. Through her long hair, Hotch could see the shame plain on her face. Tears streaked down her face before she had a chance to wipe them away.

The thought of someone abusing Jack at that age burned through Hotch. For a brief instant he could see Rachel as she had been, beautiful and innocent. Irregardless of what had been done to her, that was far too young an age to lose one's innocence. Bile burned in his throat.

"It's important if you still remember it. Not many people can remember things from that early in their childhood," Hotch said. It wasn't hard to feel sympathy for the woman but Hotch's main concern was getting all of them out of here, alive.

"Nothing happened," Rachel growled. Hotch stayed quiet until she began to speak again.

"I can remember my brother taking me to a 'friend's' house. He wanted to play a 'game' with me. He was old enough to have pubic hair. I saw it when he was walking toward me naked. I was lying on his bed with my underwear gone. I wasn't sure what kind of game he wanted to play but so far it wasn't much fun. Just as he was climbing onto the bed his parents came home and he left the room. I can remember walking out onto the front door step with my underwear in my hand. I didn't know how to put them back on." By the time she was finished her voice had gone very quiet and young sounding. Rachel still wouldn't look at the FBI agent. She was ashamed. It wasn't something she'd told many people because it seemed very insignificant but had stayed with her all these years.

"That wasn't 'nothing', Rachel," Hotch said. It was a close call. If the parents hadn't come home when they did, things would have been much worse for the girl. The fact that she remembered as much detail as she did had the ring of truth to him. Childhood memories were notoriously unreliable but at least she believed it to be true. "It should have never happened."

"I've got to go check on the others," Rachel said as she climbed quickly to her feet and headed for the door.

From where he was, Hotch had a better view of Reid but he still couldn't reach him. He hated not being able to touch Reid to reassure himself that the younger man was all right. Sitting up was irritating some of his injuries but he tried to ignore them as long as he could.

The door to the cell opened and Rachel came in laid out two piles of blankets. She didn't look or speak to Hotch. Trying to give the woman some room, Hotch just sat and watched. Satisfied, she headed back into the hallway. Silence reigned for a few minutes and then Rachel came back in, a very tall, very uncoordinated young man held tightly against her side. She laid Jared down on the longest pile of blankets, pausing long enough to put a couple of them over him.

By the time she came back with Matt dePape Hotch wasn't really surprised. Both of the young men were naked, apparently that was how Mary liked them. They were also both drugged, completely incapacitating them. Once she covered Matt, Rachel settled into the chair. She wasn't comfortable sitting on the floor any more.

"Do you want me to leave your colleague in the bed or do you want him near you?" Rachel asked suddenly. She still wouldn't look at Hotch. She deeply regretted telling the man about her first memory of abuse or potential abuse. Now she felt vulnerable and just plain silly.

"I would like him here, beside me," Hotch stated. The fact that the woman had brought all of the young men together in the same room was a good sign. It meant that she wasn't willing to let Mary abuse them in privacy anymore. Hotch hoped it also meant that she planned on stopping the older woman from doing it again.

Rachel made a bed beside Hotch and then carefully moved a still insensate Reid into it. She'd left Reid still lying on his side so that his head was against Hotch's hip and his chest was a few inches from Hotch's leg. Content for the moment, Hotch gently laid his good hand on Reid's top shoulder. Within a matter of minutes, Reid had snuggled up against Hotch's leg. Even drugged, he recognized his boss's scent again.

"What do we do now?" Rachel asked. "We're in the middle of a dense forest without a vehicle. I can't get any of you out of here even if I tried."

"You should go for help," Hotch suggested. He knew he wasn't able to do it himself. His body wasn't going to cooperate that long. His head kept settling down so that his chin was against his chest and sleep tried to slip over him at the slightest chance.

"Mary would kill me," Rachel stated. "She just might kill you and the others if she finds you here like this."

Further discussion was pre-empted by a sound outside in the hallway. Anxiously, Rachel stepped to the door and pushed it closed. It was the sound of the trap door. If Mary had returned this early the reason was going to be bad for everyone involved. Franticly, Rachel moved over to the nearest piece of large furniture and tried to slide it in front of the door.

"Where the fuck are they?!" Mary yelled from the other side of the door. Her voice was dark with fury. "What have you done with them, bitch?"

"I won't let you hurt them again," Rachel said through the door as she glanced over her shoulder at the four men in the room. Hotch was trying to reach his feet but without success.

"Oh, I don't plan on hurting them anymore, I plan on killing them. Every last one of them," came the angry reply.


	19. Chapter 19

_Hi! Thank you all for reading this story and especially to those of you who reviewed! I love hearing from you and welcome any advice you might have. I'm trying to move the story along without losing too much of the hurt/comfort part that I love so well. Let me know how I'm doing. PLEASE!!!_

_Anyway, this might be the last chapter till after the weekend. I'm going camping and unfortunately won't have the ability to upload. I'll still be writing, don't worry about that. It's a compulsive thing, just like checking for reviews! _

_Have a great weekend. I'll upload as soon as I can. I promise._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Once he'd informed the FBI agents that they were after the wrong man, Dave waited for them to organize the search. He preferred to work alone when his brother wasn't around. This time, however, he had to rely on the authorities. If he could have found a helicopter to rent with FLIR (Forward Looking Infra Red) to look for heat signatures he wouldn't have bothered with them. If the forest wasn't so damned big and dense he would have searched every inch of it on his own.

Now he was leaning against his car, waiting for the helicopters to come in. He knew that the feds would let him know if they found anything but he couldn't go back to the hotel room. Not without Jared. The night was progressing but the pilots were determined to search as long as possible, for which Dave was grateful. In the bright lights from the generators, Dave could see Rossi, Prentiss, J.J. and Morgan holding their own vigil. Apparently no one felt much like sleeping. Dave just wanted his brother back, in one piece or as close to it as Jared could manage.

OOOOO

He wasn't used to dreaming. It was something that Jared never really did. In his line of work that was a blessing in disguise. At the moment, though, he was dreaming. There was a woman touching him, using him in ways that he'd never been used before. It wasn't gentle or loving but angry and rough. The woman took what she wanted without consideration of his pain.

Slowly Jared began to realize that the dream wasn't really a dream. He was remembering what had been done to him while he was so badly drugged up that he couldn't do anything about it. In short, he'd been raped by a woman. Incredible. Dave was never going to let him live this down.

The drugs were screwing up his mind. Jared wasn't sure when or where he was. One second he was in the throws of a dream and then he seemed to be at least vaguely attached to the here and now. At least that's what he assumed when he felt broth sliding down his throat. The liquid was very good and helped to quench his thirst and to settle his stomach. Whatever was being forced into his mouth wasn't sitting well.

Jared could tell that there were two different women. The first one sounded like the woman from the bar. That didn't track. Mary, he thought her name had been, had seemed very nice. How could she have run over him with a car and then thrown him down here to use as she saw fit? Normal people just didn't do things like that. That was something the sons of bitches he and Dave hunted did.

Jared drifted away. Parts of his body hurt that were never intended to hurt when he came back. Things were made worse by the fact that someone was manhandling him, trying to make him move. The thought of fighting her passed by his mind, then he realized it was the second woman. The woman who cleaned him up after Mary had her way, the one who fed him the broth. He figured that if she was trying to move him it was for his own good.

As hard as he tried to help, Jared barely managed to put one foot in front of the other twice in a row. Then he drifted away again. Shouting woke him. That hated voice was yelling on the other side of a door. Jared assumed there was a door in the way because her voice was muffled. She was yelling something about someone killing her brother. Shit. That didn't sound good. He shifted, trying to wake up further. Pain spasmed through Jared's body taking his breath away and causing bile to rise up in his throat, and then he was under again. His body still heard though and he started to tremble. Memories kept floating through his mind. Memories of that voice and the things she whispered to him while she touched him. The trembling got worse.

OOOOO

"Why aren't you at work? What's going on?" Rachel called through the door. She was piling everything she could find in front of the portal. The last thing she wanted was to let the woman inside when she was so angry.

"Those bastards killed Danny!" Mary shouted. She thumped against the door. "Why did you move them?"

"What?" Rachel breathed. Shocked, she'd stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Aaron. That didn't seem right. How could Danny West be dead? Danny West, the kid that Mary used to force her to hang around with. The same kid who would find new and inventive ways of waking Rachel up when she slept over at Mary's house. Rachel's favourite was when he used a bare, lit light bulb and put it against her genitals. Apparently he just wanted to see if she'd notice. Rachel realized that while she was upset that the kid was dead, she wasn't going to miss him. At all.

Hotch hadn't reached his feet, he was leaning against the chest. The pain medication was making him more comfortable but less coordinated, just like Reid, and was also making thinking more of a challenge. Concern burned in his heart and eyes. Who was Danny and why was she so upset?

"Let me in there!" Mary bellowed. "I want them to pay for my brother's life!"

"It's not their fault! They weren't even there! How can you blame them? It's our fault that they're here to begin with. What did you expect to happen when you kidnapped two FBI agents?" Rachel shouted back. She was scared. She'd never heard Mary like this before and was terrified of what she was going to do.

"My brother's DEAD!" Mary shrieked. There was a louder thump. She was using something against the door.

"That's our fault, not theirs!" Rachel responded. She could hear Hotch trying to reach his feet again. The man really was having trouble, just what she didn't need at the moment. If he was at 100 percent the two of them could easily take Mary. Well, at least Rachel hoped. The fact that the other woman still had the gun was disconcerting.

Mary didn't reply. She was busy doing something. What exactly was what scared Rachel. The walls were made of dirt. It would be easy for either one of them to tunnel their way out or in. The door was just a way to slow her down, hopefully until Mary calmed down some.

"Now what?" Rachel asked as she looked at Hotch. This was his line of work. She had no idea where to go or what to do.

"Her brother is dead? Is he younger or older?" Hotch asked. He was trying to process things, to find an edge that they could use but his mind was too muddled with the drugs. At the moment he almost preferred the migraine.

"Younger. Mary has four brothers. They're all bastards. Well, that's not true. David wasn't too bad but even he liked to spy on me when I was in the bathroom. Those kids had no morals. Danny was the worse because he was the same age as me. So I could never get away from him, not even at school," Rachel replied. She was pacing around the room, trying to figure out where Mary was and what she was doing. During her first pass she noticed that the three young men were all trembling to some extent. It chilled her heart that Mary's violence had done so much to them.

"Mary's brothers abused you?" Hotch asked. He could feel Reid shaking like a leaf against his side. He couldn't stand up to help Rachel but maybe he could give Reid a little peace. Ignoring the pain, Hotch pulled the thin man onto his lap and wrapped his good arm around him. It was an unnatural action for the Unit Chief. Under normal circumstances he rarely touched Reid much less held him like a child but he was immediately rewarded by Reid's shaking abating.

"Yeah," Rachel admitted. She'd all ready told this man more than she had anyone in her life. There wasn't much else but truth to tell. It was the least she owed him. "I think they went after her too. But her parents kept harping on family and how important it was and how they could only depend on each other. She'd never tell on them and she made sure I wouldn't either."

"How did she do that?" Hotch inquired. He had his ears peeled, trying to figure out where Mary was and what she was doing. Reid's head was resting on his sore shoulder but Hotch left it there. He could hear Reid talking quietly to himself. From the few words he caught, he knew his young colleague's thoughts were taking a dark turn. He held him a little bit tighter.

"I was younger. I looked up to her. If I even tried to have another friend she'd threaten to never talk to me again. At the time that seemed like it would be the end of the world. I let her isolate me. I don't know if she realized how much worse that made things but I'm not sure that she'd care. My only friend, the only person in the world I trusted outside my family and it was her family, the people she lived with that were always after me. I felt like I was trapped," Rachel stated. Her pacing became a little more frantic the more she revealed. Why the hell was she telling this man all this? She was responsible for his kidnapping. He must hate her.

"You were in a very bad position. So was she. She had to live with them," Hotch said. He glanced at Reid's profile. The young profiler was starting to settle. The longer Mary was quiet, the less restless all of the young men became. "What do you think she's doing?"

"I have no idea. I'm not sure I want to know. I just know she can't burn us out of here," Rachel stated. She was staring at the earthen walls. They really weren't very well protected. For the first time she wished with all her heart that the FBI agents would find them. Preferably before Mary made her way into this room.

OOOOO

"One of the pilots has a hit. It appears to be a vehicle with a warm motor. It's too dark for him to land so he's wondering if we could do a ground search for him," Sheriff Hicks stated. It was going to be a long trip in the dark but he was willing to make it. He had the feeling that if the FBI agents got to Mary first that she might not live through the encounter. Hicks wanted to talk to the woman himself, to find out what the hell happened.

"Do you know how to get there?" Morgan asked. He and Rossi were still in the camp. Rossi had sent J.J. and Prentiss to the hotel room to rest. Once dawn broke and the search continued he wanted to make sure that two of them were fresh.

"I know the general area and the helicopter is going to hover until we get there. Unless he sees someone approaching the vehicle. The last thing we need to do is to tip the kidnappers off," Hicks stated. He all ready knew what the agents' response would be and was leading the way toward the big sheriff SUV. They were going to need it to get through the terrain.

"Let's go," Rossi said as he and Morgan followed the officer to his vehicle. Hopefully this mean they were one step closer to Hotch and Reid.


	20. Chapter 20

_Thank you very much for the reviews! It really helps to keep me motivated. Especially when it includes what you like and what you don't like. _

_I wrote more this weekend but have to redo it a bit. It doesn't quite flow the way I was hoping. I'll post it as soon as I'm happy._

_Thanks again to everyone who's reviewed or added this story to their alerts or favourites. Thanks for coming along for the ride with me!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY

Not waiting for an invitation, Dave climbed into the SUV. He knew from the men's reaction that something had come up and he wasn't going to be left behind. Sitting in the backseat with Morgan he tried to figure out what was going on. He just hoped it meant they were zeroing in on Jared.

"Are there any structures around the vehicle?" Rossi asked. He wanted to get there. Now. This infernal driving at night through dense foliage was causing latent claustrophobic to surface. Where the hell did that come from?

"No. From what I understand from the pilot it's nothing but trees and a small clearing. That's what he gets from the infra red anyway. Once we get there it might be different. It's not like many of the cabins in this area have electricity or heat sources other than fireplaces," Hicks stated.

"Are you saying that they wouldn't show up in infra red anyway?" Dave asked from the backseat. That was something he hadn't considered.

"Not likely. That's why we were looking for people and vehicles. We knew they'd show up," Hicks stated.

"How much further is it?" Morgan asked. He was more concerned than he wanted to admit for Reid and Hotch. What was being done to the two of them? All the truly awful things the BAU had investigated played through his mind. He wondered if it would be faster if he just got out and ran.

"It's going to take a while to find a way around a small stream coming up. I'll get us there as fast as I can," Hicks stated.

OOOOO

There was no sound coming from the other side of the door. That was probably the scariest thing of all. Rachel paced to the door and placed her ear against it but still all she found was silence. Where was Mary? What was she doing? The wondering was beginning to drive her a little crazy. She looked around the room at her and Mary's young victims.

They were all still asleep. Rachel supposed that was a good thing. Jared as curled up on his side, his knees drawn up and his blankets held tightly against his chin. His long chestnut bangs were hanging in his face, making him look much younger than he really was. Guilt gnawed at Rachel's mind.

On her way by, she knelt down beside young Matt. The one who helped her start all of this. She ran her hand through his close cropped dark brown hair and looked at his face. He truly was beautiful. Rachel knew she'd objectified him. He was more than his body and his face. He was a living, breathing person with his own life to live. She just hoped he could continue from where she'd stolen him. The thought that he was going to be someone other than the person she'd kidnapped brought tears to her eyes. What had she done? How could going to jail ever make up for any of this?

Across the room, Hotch watched Rachel with Matt lePape. Her gentleness and obvious remorse let him know all he needed. She wasn't going to let anything happen to Matt and by extension the rest of them. She wasn't a bad person, just very confused. Finished with Matt, Rachel stood back up and glanced at Hotch. Shame turned her cheeks and neck red before she quickly turned away.

Trying to think of something to say that might make Rachel feel better, Hotch glanced down at Reid. His young associate had his side pressed against Aaron's chest, his head tucked against Aaron's injured shoulder. Reid's hands were currently resting on his lap but at times he twisted them together, as if trying to wash something disturbing off them. Reid's brown long bangs hung in front of his face making it hard for Aaron to see his expressions. But he knew that he was more relaxed, at least his shaking had decreased to an occasional tremble.

Aaron's back was getting sore where the chest dug into his skin. Reid looked light but after this length of time his Unit Chief was finding his weight to have increased. Reid's boney but was digging into his genitals. Given the recent abuse they'd suffered it was uncomfortable to say the least. Aaron's shoulder was also beginning to pulse with pain from having Reid's head pressed into it. Somehow, though he couldn't bring himself to put the young genius back on the floor. Unconsciously he was hoping that if he held Reid that he could somehow protect him from harm.

Both of them were too preoccupied by their own thoughts and regrets to notice a small trickle of dirt begin to fall from a spot on the earthen wall. The grains of soil fell soundlessly to join the soil on the ground. The spot on the wall wasn't very big. Mary didn't want them to notice her. She was hoping to get one shot off before the residents of the room could realize what had happened. She wanted those bastard FBI agents dead. With any luck she could get them both before Rachel could stop her.

Rachel. That bitch. How could she choose those whores over her? They were soul mates. They both knew what it was like to be used and they both wanted to get a little revenge in. Or so Mary had thought. Watching through the hole she'd made in the wall, Mary saw Rachel help first Matt and then Jared drink some water before handing the bottle off to Hotch. The older FBI agent took a mouthful before trying to move Reid into a position where the skinny genius could drink without choking.

They were all scum. Living, breathing scum. Mary wanted them dead. It was the least they deserved for killing her little brother. She hadn't believed the gas station attendant when he told her about the big shoot out in town today. In the time since she'd left home, Mary had managed to distance herself at least a little from her brothers. Enough that the attendant hadn't realized she was related to Danny. He'd carried on about how Danny had gone out, guns blazing like an outlaw of the Old West. The very thought sickened her.

The hole was just big enough. She could put the barrel of the gun through it and see where she was aiming. It wasn't the best angle. She could only see Hotch well. Reid was hidden behind his arm. No. That wouldn't do. She wanted to be able to see that bastard's face after the bullet struck him.

Pulling back out, Mary moved further down the wall. It had taken her a while to come up with the idea of burrowing through the wall. She'd spent too long searching for something in the tunnels and the cabin above that would break through the timbers of the door. It wasn't until she'd found the oversized spoon that she'd realized she had another way in. Grinning broadly, Mary began to dig again.

OOOOO

The trip through the forest seemed to last forever. By the time they reached the vehicle Rossi was thoroughly discomforted. The trees seemed to be reaching for the sheriff's SUV, trying to stop them. The river bed had taken the longest to get over and around. The sheriff was forced to drive between its banks for a few minutes. Even in the darkness Rossi could feel the walls on either side closing in.

Stepping out of the SUV into the crisp night air was a relief. Above them the BAU members could hear the helicopter circling. The sheriff's radio squawked as the pilot confirmed that it was them before heading back to base. He was running low on fuel.

"This is Rachel Carson's vehicle," Sheriff Hicks said as they walked up to it. He knew the license plate of pretty much everyone in town. He was dismayed to think that Rachel would have anything to do with this but he couldn't come up with any plausible explanation for her Jeep being in the middle of the forest. Rachel liked to camp but she also liked to have the amenities of electricity and running water.

"Does Rachel Carson know Mary West?" Rossi asked. He was pacing around the dark gray vehicle. It looked like it had seen some pretty heavy off-roading of late. Using a flash light he glanced at the undercarriage. It was full of weeds, grass and small shrubs. Clearly this wasn't its first trip into the woods.

"They used to. When they were kids they were inseparable but then something happened. I don't think they've been friendly for nearly fifteen years," Hicks stated. He and the two girls had gone to school together. He knew that Rachel was a quiet, unassuming person that enjoyed working with her plants out at the local nursery. Mary, on the other hand, had appeared much more outgoing and social, at least in recent years. None of this was making a whole lot of sense.

"Could they have hooked up again?" Morgan asked. He'd popped the hatch on the Jeep and was panning his flashlight around. There was blood in the gray carpet. "I've found blood."

Rossi moved over to look around Morgan at the trunk. His heart and stomach plummeted somewhere around his knees. How could they have missed all of this?

"Are there any cabins around here?" Rossi asked once he found his voice again.

"No, none that I know of. But this area used to be full of bootleggers during Prohibition. I'm sure there are several old cabins around that I don't know about. I'll radio to have Forestry Service personnel meet us here at first light. If we wander around too much on our own we may miss something," Hicks said. He went back to his SUV to make the call. It was then he realized that Dave was gone. Why didn't that surprise him?

OOOOO

While the other three men were busy examining the Jeep, Dave slipped out of the police service SUV and took in the lay of the land. He kept the SUV between himself and the agents' flashlights. He wanted to be able to see what was going on around them, not what was going on in front of them.

Still listening to the conversation between the agents and the sheriff, Dave did a slow circle of the area where the Jeep was parked. Whoever had left it here had known what they were doing. The canopy above them was too thick for air searches to find it. He couldn't quite figure out where the person who'd driven it had gone. Well, at least it made the forest that much smaller. Slipping his hands into his coat pockets, Dave picked a direction and began to make ever widening circles. He was going to find his brother one way or another.

OOOOO

"Do you think Mary left?" Rachel asked hopefully. It was still too quiet outside. Rachel was hanging around the door. She hadn't sat still for several minutes. Nervous energy was thrumming through her. She was still waiting for the other shoe to fall. Intuitively she knew that Mary wasn't done.

"We didn't hear her open the trap door," Aaron said. He was getting kind of hot and sweaty under Reid's lean body. He wasn't sure if it was because of Reid giving off extra heat from possible infection or from his own body reacting to the violence done to it. The longer he sat, the stiffer Aaron was getting. As much as he hated to, he was going to have to put Reid on the blankets on the floor.

"True. But the door was open when we heard it last. Maybe we can't hear it with the door closed," Rachel worried.

"I'm not sure," Aaron admitted. He was trying to move Reid but the young man had caught hold of his injured arm and was trying to stay where he was. Aaron knew that if Reid was aware and himself that he'd be completely mortified by his actions. The young doctor spent far too much time trying to convince people that he was mature and older than he looked. If he knew he was sitting in Aaron's lap like a child, Hotch wasn't sure he'd ever be able to look his boss in the eye again.

"Here, let me help," Rachel offered as she covered the distance between them. She could see how much trouble the senior FBI agent was having.

"No," Aaron responded too quickly and too forcefully. He hadn't taken the time to consider his response. The last thing he wanted to do was to let this woman touch his subordinate again. Rachel and Mary had done too much to him all ready. As stable as Rachel appeared to be at the moment, Hotch wasn't sure how long that would last and he wasn't willing to take the chance that she might injure or abuse Reid. He saw the hurt flash across the woman's round face, followed immediately by understanding and resignation. She stopped in her tracks and waited.

As hard as he tried, though, Aaron was unable to move Reid from his position. If he'd had both his arms it wouldn't have been a problem. Sighing, Aaron looked up at the woman who was still standing stock still five feet away from him.

"I could use a little help," Hotch said, the words bitter in his mouth. Diffidently, the woman walked forward and gently caught hold of Reid's nearest hand and pried the fingers off of the Unit Chief's arm with the utmost care. Then, between the two of them, they lifted Reid off Hotch's lap and Rachel laid Reid down among his blankets before covering him up. Immediately, Reid curled up on his side in a fetal position. It seemed to be a common theme among the young men.

As soon as Reid was moved and comfortable, Rachel moved away and began to pace again. The agent's quick dismissal had hurt. But she knew she deserved it. The last thing Hotch wanted was for her to touch his subordinate. She couldn't blame him.

During her second circuit of the room, Rachel happened to catch a glimpse of movement out of the corner of her eye. The fact that one of the four men in the room was moving wasn't surprising. What was surprising was the fact that the movement was coming from along the wall. Just as Rachel stopped to take a better look, a bright flash erupted.

Instantly the room was full of noise, smoke and the smell of gunpowder. Rachel's first thought was that Mary was shooting at her but had missed. Then she looked around the room, brushing the smoke away from in front of her face with a wave of her hand. The three young men appeared to be all right, well, as all right as they were likely to be any time soon.

"Rachel?" The sound of the FBI agent's voice stopped Rachel in her tracks. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Looking toward the voice, Rachel saw Aaron sitting against the chest. It took her a moment to follow his line of sight to the small blotch of red on his shirt. The blotch was getting larger by the second. Aaron had been shot in his injured shoulder.


	21. Chapter 21

_Hi. Thank you very much for all the reviews! I'm absolutely blown away. I guess people like this? I know I'm having a little too much fun writing it. ;) I hope you enjoy this new chapter. I promise the story will move along much further in the next one. Well, I hope so anyway._

_Thanks again!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

Aaron had been sitting forward, trying again unsuccessfully to reach his feet when the bullet had struck him. The impact had thrown the Unit Chief back against the chest stunning him. Instantly, Aaron found it hard to breathe. Between his side and his shoulder his body was refusing to listen to him. When he could finally pull a ragged breath into his oxygen starved lungs, his first thought had been to get the woman's attention. He needed help and he knew it.

Rachel's immediate response was to race to Aaron's side, to try to staunch the flow of blood but then the sound came again. The sound of the gun discharging into the room was deafening. Instantly, Rachel's focus moved from the men inside the room to the woman on the other side of the wall. Moving with speed she hadn't known she possessed, Rachel sprinted to the wall, caught hold of the gun's barrel and tried to pull it through.

The metal was hot and burned her skin but Rachel didn't let go. A silent tug of war ensued as both woman tried to pull the gun away. The only sound was the grunts of exertion as they both strained to maintain control of the weapon. The thought that Mary may just shoot her crossed Rachel's mind but she didn't care. If Mary killed her then her parents wouldn't have to go through the humiliation of a trial, of having to visit their daughter in prison.

Rachel's hands were beginning to bleed as she broke the blisters from the burns. It made it a lot harder to hold onto the metal barrel. Then it slipped through Rachel's fingers and disappeared onto the other side of the wall again.

"Mary!" Rachel screamed as she searched her immediate vicinity to find something to stopper the hole. "We need to stop this! You've shot the FBI agent."

"Good!!" Mary shouted from the other side of the wall. "I hope he dies, just like Danny!"

Deciding that arguing with the woman was wasting valuable time Rachel wiped her hands on her jeans and headed to Hotch. She'd found a metal plate and took the time to brace it against the hole. She'd also noticed the first hole and had covered it at well. Now she had to deal with Aaron.

"How bad is it?" Rachel asked. Hotch was still sitting against the chest, his good hand pressed against the slowly spreading blossom of blood. His face was white as a sheet and a thin sheen of sweat had broken out on his skin. When he looked up at her, Rachel was stunned by the pain in those brown depths. Yet, he never said a word.

Rachel knelt down beside the injured man and gently leaned him forward. She wanted to see if the bullet had gone through. It was what she'd learned from watching too much TV. Her stomach dropped when she found a much larger blossom of blood growing across the back of his shoulder. Now what should she do? Her first instinct was to lie him down so she could work on him easier but that would preclude her working on one wound or the other.

"Here, I have to get you to lie down," Rachel said. As gently but as quickly as she could, Rachel got Hotch lying down on his uninjured shoulder. She knew it was a position that was likely to aggravate his other injuries but it was the best she could think of.

The first thing she had to do was to undo all the bandages she'd had on the shoulder to keep it in place. They were just in the way at the moment anyway and she could use them to try to get the blood stopped. Under her ministrations Hotch remained completely still. He had his eyes tightly closed and she had the feeling he was holding his breath most of the time. She hoped that was the reason his lips occasionally turned a subtle blue color before he took a deep, heaving breath.

Without asking for permission, Rachel undid the buttons on Hotch's white cotton shirt once she was finished with the bandages. The shirt out of the way and the bandages gone, she had a better view of the damage. Rachel found that the entry wound was actually quite small. That surprised her as she wiped distractedly at the blood that seeped out of it. The exit wound was much uglier and too big. It was almost the size of her fist. The edges were jagged and nasty looking. Bile rose in her throat. At the same time she was grateful that it appeared that the bullet hadn't hit any of the important veins or vessels. Otherwise Hotch would have all ready bled out.

Hotch hissed against the pain while Rachel examined the entry and exit wounds. He knew he was in trouble. He wasn't sure if he was going to be able to last until the Calvary came. The pain medication was keeping the pain at a respectable distance. It made it easier for Hotch to compartmentalize what was going on around him. But it didn't numb him to all of the pain raging through his body. That would take much stronger drugs and general anaesthetic at this point. He hissed again as Rachel pressed a large bandage against the back of his shoulder.

"Sorry," Rachel responded automatically. She pressed another cloth against the entrance wound and sat still, trying to get the blood stopped before she bandaged the wounds better. She could feel Hotch begin to tremble under her hands. She figured it was probably due to shock. She was going to have to get the blood stopped ASAP and get him covered up. Despite her best efforts she found sitting beside the man while he was naked from the waist up rather distracting.

Hotch was closer to her own age. While Matt, Jared and Reid were young and beautiful, Hotch had a beauty that didn't make her feel like a pedophile. His body was in very good shape and he had a few scars but he was still pretty darn easy on the eyes. Shame flowed through Rachel again. This man was desperately injured and she was looking at him as if he were a potential lover. No wonder all of this had happened.

"Where is she?" Hotch managed. He still had his eyes closed. Rachel was thankful for this because he knew she wouldn't be able to hide the lust in her eyes. With a mental and physical shake, Rachel grounded herself back into the here and now and turned her thoughts to healing, not hurting.

"I'm not sure," Rachel admitted while she continued to press against the wounds. The one on the front was all ready slowing but the one on the back wasn't showing any signs of letting up. "I'm going to have to move you."

Before Hotch had a chance to protest, Rachel rolled him onto his stomach. She was going to have to depend on the pressure of him lying on the entrance wound to stop the blood. She needed both hands for the exit wound. Releasing the bandage on the front, Rachel pressed both of her hands against the large wad of cloth on the exit wound.

A low moan escaped from Hotch. The pressure was pushing the pain through the medication. It felt like Rachel had a burning hot poker pressed against his shoulder. At the same time Hotch could feel his other injuries protesting at the treatment. Darkness was gnawing at the corners of his mind. With Herculean effort, the Unit Chief pushed the darkness away. He wasn't going to do himself or Reid any good unconscious. Within seconds, the darkness was back, starting at the edges of his mind and working its way inward.

"I'm sorry but I need to stop the bleeding. Stay as still as you can," Rachel stated. The blood from the burns on Rachel's hands was soaking into the bandage she held on Hotch's shoulder. It hurt like hell but she wasn't letting up. Unexpectedly, the senior FBI agent's body went completely lax. He'd lost consciousness.

Huddled over the man, still pressing against the bandages, Rachel replayed the whole scene through her mind. It was then she remembered that Mary had shot twice. Startled by the revelation, Rachel sat up and looked first to Matt. Relief flowed through her when she couldn't see any obvious blood stains standing out from his still form. The same with Jared, the young man was curled on his side, his long knees drawn up to his chest.

Then she turned to Reid. There wasn't a lot of blood. She had to really look to see it but once she did it was all she saw. The younger FBI agent was curled up like Jared with his back toward the wall. His arms were wrapped around his midsection but that wasn't where the blood was coming from. It was on his topmost side. It looked almost as if Mary had shot him in the butt. As much as Rachel wanted to see just how bad it was, she decided to stay with Hotch for the time being. He was bleeding the most and was in the most danger.

OOOOO

The woods were dark. Too dark. Even with the flashlight Dave knew he was missing things. He'd thought briefly about going back to the others, waiting for dawn. Not bloody likely. His brother was out here somewhere, probably in the hands of a psycho. There was no way he was leaving Jared in that situation any longer than absolutely necessary. If that meant tramping through these godforsaken woods for the next year he was going to do it.

OOOOO

"This sucks," Morgan growled. They'd all ready examined the Jeep three times, each time finding exactly the same things as the first time. He couldn't even call Garcia to get her to do a satellite survey of the area or J.J. or Emily. There was no cell service where they were standing or anywhere he'd tried in the last half hour.

"I concur," Rossi stated. The two FBI agents were sitting against the hood of the police SUV. Morgan had his well muscled arms crossed over his well muscled chest. All this standing still while Reid and Hotch were in trouble was driving him absolutely nuts. Nervous energy was coursing through his muscles and he felt the need to beat the carp out of someone, anyone.

"How much longer?" Rossi asked, glancing over his shoulder at Sheriff Hicks who was sitting in the driver's seat of the SUV. The sheriff looked to be just as frustrated as they were. He'd been on the radio with the helicopter pilot for the last ten minutes, trying to get an update on when to expect the resumption of the search.

"Half an hour," Hicks stated. Absently he ran a hand over his face. The sheriff couldn't remember the last time he'd slept. If they didn't find the missing men, he wasn't sure he'd even sleep again. Guilt still ate at his mind and stomach. How could he have not seen what was under Mary's surface? He was trained in this. He should have seen it.

"I'm going to take a walk," Morgan said. "I'll be back before the copter shows up."

OOOOO

Time seemed to slow down for Rachel. A second became a minute, a minute became an hour. Finally, though, after three or four bandages, she got the bleeding from Aaron's shoulder to stop. It only took her a few moments to wrap the bandages in place and throw two blankets over the dark haired man's still body.

Quickly, she moved over to Reid. The young man hadn't moved since she'd laid him in the blankets. He hadn't even appeared to react to being shot. Tentatively, Rachel knelt down by his side and pulled the blankets back. There was a long, shallow furrow through the young genius's skin from his hip most of the way down his thigh.

"Shit," Rachel swore as she looked at it. It had seeped a fair amount of blood but nothing like Hotch's shoulder. It was ultimately going to need stitches to close the two halves of flesh but Rachel wasn't going to do it until she absolutely had to. She remembered hearing or reading somewhere that there was about a twelve to twenty-four hour window before the edges of the flesh started to die. She just hoped that this was all over with before that.

As quickly, as carefully as she could, Rachel cleaned up the furrow. It wasn't very dirty but she wanted to keep it as clean as possible anyway. While she rubbed gently at the wound, Reid began to shift around. Rachel couldn't remember how long ago it had been since Mary gave them their medication. She wasn't sure she really wanted to be here when they did wake up. They wouldn't be too thrilled with her and she didn't blame them.

"Hotch?" Reid said the word barely discernable through the slurring of his mouth. Clearly the drug was still in his system but had begun to loosen its hold.

"He's here," Rachel said while she worked. The young genius's muscles were twitching under her fingers. It was an unnerving sensation. She'd deliberately started at the far end of the furrow. The last thing she wanted to see was the young man any more naked than she all ready had. To that end she'd pulled the blankets off him but left them tented up to his sides, leaving just his hip to his knee bare.

"What's happening?" Reid asked. He was desperately trying to open his eyes but they wouldn't cooperate. He had vague memories of recent events but he wasn't completely convinced of their validity. A small part of him was still holding out that it was all a fever dream.

"It's kind of a long story. I'll let Agent Hotchner explain it all to you when he's feeling better," Rachel said. She'd chickened out. She didn't want to be the one to tell him or the others what had been done to them.

"Sick?" Reid was becoming very frustrated. Words were something he understood and was very good with. Yet the moment it took everything he had physically and mentally to string more than one word together at a time. He was dimly aware that he was naked under the rough blankets and that there were various aches and pains throughout his body. The worst one at the moment, however, was from his hip. Whatever the woman was doing didn't make it feel any better.

"Ah, I guess you could say that," Rachel hedged. When she reached that end of the furrow at the top of Reid's hip, she could feel the hip bone shift slightly under her hand. Instantly Reid sucked air between clenched teeth and his face tightened up in pain. The hip bone was broken. "Damn."


	22. Chapter 22

_I was going to be good, honest. I was going to get them closer to being rescued. Then I started watching Criminal Minds on TV tonight. Hotch and Reid were so cute that I couldn't help myself. I really am a sick puppy. Anyway, I promise I'll work more on the plot next chapter. Well, maybe. ;)_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

The pain was overwhelming. Reid couldn't figure out exactly how he'd come to be where he was, with who he was and in such mind numbing, all consuming pain. Where was Morgan or Rossi or Hotch? None of this was making sense. Through half mast eyes he tried to study the woman who was doing what she could for him. There was absolutely no recognition while he scanned her round face. The woman wasn't looking at him. She was too busy concentrating on trying to do something for his hip. Reid wished desperately that she'd just leave it alone. It hadn't really hurt until she'd touched it.

Despite not being able to recognize the woman, Reid had the feeling that he was safe with her. He couldn't quite figure that one out either. Why was he so groggy? He hadn't been taking drugs again, had he? Reid hoped not. He'd barely managed to quit the last time he'd taken drugs following being kidnapped by Tobias Henkel. While he didn't feel quite the same, Reid knew that he wasn't thinking clearly and that he didn't have full control over his body. Otherwise he would have pulled away from the woman's probing fingers. One poke too many and darkness descended like a black, velvet curtain at the end of a show.

Rachel was almost relieved when Reid lost consciousness. It made things easier but she still didn't really know what to do for him. Between being hit by a car, being raped and now being shot, she wasn't sure where to start exactly. The one thing she knew for sure was that the kid was going to need surgery to fix his hip and maybe a few other things. She just hoped he survived until the Feds found them. Pulling the blanket up over him again, Rachel moved over to Jared and Matt.

She was so intent on making sure that Jared was okay, that Rachel didn't notice that the door was slowly pushing open. It happened by millimetres at a time so it was barely perceptible unless she was watching it closely, which she wasn't. Satisfied that the tall young man was as good as he was going to get, Rachel made her way to Matt. He was still her favourite. She felt better when she was near the young man. Suddenly very, very tired, Rachel settled down behind Matt and wrapped a protective arm around him. Then her eyes slammed shut.

OOOOO

Hotch was only vaguely aware of what was going on around him. The shoulder wound had taken over his whole world. The still burning embers in his groin weren't a whole lot of help but they were a minor annoyance in comparison. He was drifting through a world of shadows and fog. Sounds were muffled, as if heard from a great distance. The only thing that kept him attached to the real world, the world full of blood, tears and pain was the thought that Spencer was alone without him.

Spencer. His surrogate son, whether he was willing to admit it or not. Even in his dissociative state, Hotch kept reliving watching Mary with Reid. His stomach roiled at the memories. How could he have let that happen to the younger man? The younger man that Hotch was supposed to be supervising, protecting. He felt completely inept. Darkness was trying to take over, to pull him away from his pain, physical and emotional. Hotch almost let it. But he had to stay here, to be here in case something happened. So, instead, Hotch continued to drift.

OOOOO

The cabin loomed out of the darkness. Hope sprang in Dave's chest until he got a better look at it. Clearly no one had lived there in quite some time. Panning the flashlight beam over the structure, Dave moved toward it. It didn't take him long before he found the foot prints leading in and out of the building and what looked like drag marks. They were recent.

'Bingo' Dave thought as he turned the flashlight off. There was just enough moonlight that he could see in the cabin without the flashlight. He hadn't been very careful when he was searching. If someone had been inside the cabin they would have seen him clearly. Luckily, though, it didn't appear that there was anyone within.

Cautiously, Dave stepped through the door. He took in the debris scattered across the floor and in various places in the cabin. He could find the footprints but then they seemed to disappear in the middle of the floor. There was nowhere for anyone to hide. Damn. Walking back out of the cabin, Dave moved far enough away that if there was someone there or under it they couldn't hear him.

He was somewhat surprised to find that he had a signal for his cell phone. Dialling the number Rossi had given him, Dave waited for the older man to answer. Instead it went to voice mail. Cursing under his breath, Dave waited for the beep. "Yeah, this is Dave. I've found an old cabin out here. There doesn't seem to be anyone here but I have a feeling that it's where they were taken. I'll wait here until daylight. I want to take a better look."

Quickly, Dave rattled off the GPS coordinates of the cabin. Still hyper, he continued to search around the cabin until the sun came up enough for him to do a more thorough examination.

OOOOO

"Finally," Sheriff Hicks breathed. He turned toward the two FBI agents standing beside his vehicle. "The chopper is up. It'll be in range in a few minutes."

"About time," Morgan growled. He'd come back to the vehicle after doing several circuits. He really hated feeling this damned useless. He wanted to get going, to be doing something. Anything was better than sitting here, knowing that Hotch and Reid were in trouble.

"Will it be able to land nearby or are we going to try to follow it in the SUV?" Rossi asked. He too was going a little stir crazy. He wanted more than anything to find Hotch and Reid, to know they were okay. Based on their past experiences though, he doubted very much that it was going to be the case. He hoped desperately that they would be alive. So long as that was the case, they would deal with anything else that came up.

"It can't land here but we'll follow. As soon as the pilot finds a clearing big enough one or both of you could go on board and help with the search from there," Hicks replied.

"I would like to get in contact with J.J. and Emily. They will be wondering where we are," Rossi stated. He didn't like being out of contact with the rest of the team. He knew that when the two women woke up, which would be shortly, that they would be looking for them.

"I have a deputy stationed outside their hotel room. I didn't want to take the chance of a repeat of yesterday," Hicks informed them. He knew that the older man held a great deal of guilt regarding his superior's disappearance. The last thing he wanted to do was to add to it. From what they knew so far, the women weren't in any danger but why take the chance? "I can relay any message you want."

"Thank you," Rossi said. He accepted the short-wave radio mike and proceeded to tell the deputy what he needed to do.

OOOOO

"Get up!!" Fear spiked through Rachel's body, bringing her awake in an instant. Opening her eyes, she found Mary standing a short distance away, the gun pointed in Hotch's general direction.

"Please, don't hurt him," Rachel pleaded as she moved away from Matt and stood up, her hands out so she would appear non-threatening. Inside she was kicking herself twelve ways past Sunday. How could she have allowed herself to fall asleep? He couldn't remember the last time she'd slept but that was no excuse.

"Why? Don't you like playing nurse to them?" Mary growled. Absently, she kicked the man. She relished the groan that the action elicited. It sounded so good, especially coming from such a strong and capable man. How had she lived all these years without feeling this thrill?

"You've done enough damage all ready," Rachel continued to plead. Frantically she ran through options in her mind. None of them were feasible. None of them resulted in any or all of them getting out of this alive.

"Oh, I'm just getting started," Mary said, a cruel smile crossing her face. She was trying to decide which one to start with. Matt was always a good choice just because of how it affected Rachel. But then, she hadn't spent any real time with Mr. Hotchner either. Maybe it was time for a new experience. Yeah, that sounded like fun.

The floor above their heads creaked. Both women went stock still at the realization that someone was above them, inside the cabin. Rachel felt hope surge through her. If someone was in the cabin, all she had to do was yell and they would find their way below.

"If you make a sound, I'll blow his head off," Mary whispered. She'd dropped to her knees and was pressing the barrel of the gun against Hotch's head. To emphasize her point, she pressed the metal against his dark hair just a little harder. Hotch moaned at the pressure.

Nodding her understanding, Rachel felt the hope turn to acid in her stomach. They weren't out of this yet.

Silently, the women listened as the person moved around the cabin. At one point the person stopped right on top of the trap door. Then they continued on and left the cabin entirely. Rachel felt tears prick the corners of her eyes. 'Come back!' kept playing through her mind.

"Good choice," Mary said. "Now, I know I can't trust you. You've chosen a man over me again. I suppose that at least you're consistent. Put these on." Mary threw Hotch's handcuffs at her. She knew they were going to come in handy.

"I can't help them if I'm cuffed," Rachel hedged. That was the last thing she wanted, to be at Mary's mercy. She knew all ready that the older woman had none.

"It's okay. I stole the key too," Mary said. "Put them on." To emphasize her point, she reached over Hotch's hip and took hole of his genitals. It didn't take much pressure before he was moaning and squirming.

"Okay, okay. Just leave him alone," Rachel said. Picking up the cuffs, she wrapped one around her left wrist and then her right. Her heart stopped with each whimper elicited from the older agent. Please make it stop!!

"Good. Now go sit in the corner. I feel the need to have some fun."


	23. Chapter 23

_I'm not completely happy with this chapter. I kept feeling that Hotch should have been a little more proactive but after all he's been through I guess not having the energy to do anything but survive makes sense too. Anyway, let me know if it's off. I'll try to do better in the next chapter._

_Thank you very much to everyone that's reviewed! The response absolutely floored me! _

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Using his good arm, Hotch caught hold of Mary's hand and tried to get it to release its hold on his genitals. The pain was excruciating, making his shoulder feel like a minor annoyance. The pain was so severe that he was having trouble drawing breath around it. His eyes were open but he wasn't really seeing what was going on around him. All he was aware of was the agony burning through him and the need to get the woman to let go.

Mary let go, caught hold of Hotch's arm and pressed it against the ground. Now that he was registering the images his eyes were seeing, Hotch saw that Mary had the gun in her hand and was pressing it against his forearm. An evil smile spread across her face.

"If you try to stop me again, I'm going to shoot your one good arm. The choice is yours," Mary hissed. Aaron felt the woman's spit land on his cheek and chin. She was now completely unhinged. He knew he should be trying to talk her down, trying to get her to calm down but he had no words. His mind was too occupied with the pain and images of Mary with Reid for him to concentrate on anything else.

"Well? Do I put another hole in you?" Mary asked, her voice sounding rather conversational.

"No," Hotch breathed. If he was going to have any chance of getting himself, Reid and the other men out of here, he was going to need his arm. Unconsciously, Aaron glanced over toward Reid. If the young genius could survive it, so could he. He tried to not think about the fact that Reid had been drugged and hopefully wouldn't remember what had transpired while he was all too aware.

"If I feel like you're fighting me at all, even one little bit, I'm going to put this gun against your arm, or maybe your leg, and pull the trigger. Do you understand?" Mary asked. She looked over at Rachel, enjoying her victory over the FBI agent. She loved the look of revulsion on the younger woman's face. This was going to be so much fun.

"Leave him alone," Rachel said. She had no hope the woman was going to listen to her. Mary was completely around the bend. All Rachel could hope for was to distract her, keep her busy until someone, anyone bothered to show up.

"Why, do you want to play?" Mary asked, her voice sounding young and innocent. Those were two things the older woman no longer was. Rachel understood why that was but she couldn't forgive Mary for deciding to heap the crap they'd gone through onto other innocent people.

"You know what this feels like, Mary. How can you do this to another person? Someone who hasn't done anything to you but been a customer in your bar? After all your brothers put us through, how can you do this to these men?" Rachel demanded. She was trying to inch toward Mary. Maybe she could knock the ever present gun out of her hand.

"Shut up about my brothers," Mary growled her voice dropping and sounding strange. Her brothers were her family. No matter what they did. No matter how much it had hurt. They were the only people in the world that she could depend on. Her mother and father had told her so. Family came first, no matter what. And this man was responsible for the death of her younger sibling. He was going to pay.

"Do you understand?!" Mary shrieked as she pressed the gun into the man's arm. Blood had begun to seep up from where the metal made contact with the flesh and she was sure she could feel the bones creaking. It would amuse the hell out of her if she broke Hotch's arm.

"Yes, I understand," Hotch managed. He knew what was going to happen. He'd seen her with Reid and knew what her predilections were. This was not going to be a pleasant experience. The fact that he was choosing to allow it to happen would haunt him for days and weeks to come he was sure. The pain in his genitals was just beginning to abate but Hotch had the feeling that wasn't going to last long.

"Good. You go sit in your corner. If you take one step closer I'm going to put a bullet in young Matt's skull. Comprende?" Mary said as she stared at Rachel.

Rachel knew she'd made a mistake by bringing up Mary's brothers. Swallowing bile, she moved back to the corner and huddled in it. This was all her fault. How was she ever going to forgive herself for causing all of this? How were these men going to learn to live with what Mary was doing to them? Rachel momentarily wished she was dead.

"Now," Mary said as she rolled Hotch onto his back. She relished the grunt that escaped the man's lips as his shoulder made contact with the ground. Humming to herself, Mary ran her free hand over Hotch's chest. His skin was so soft and warm. Mary wished she could take the bandages off but that would just kill him faster. She wasn't ready to lose her toys just yet. "Let's unwrap my prize."

OOOOO

Walking through the forest around the cabin, Dave thought he could hear voices. Listening as hard as he could, Dave couldn't figure out which direction the sounds were coming from. They were very, very faint. With the birds chirping in the trees and the wind blowing through the leaves, he was having a really hard time discerning what was human and what was the surrounding environment.

Stopping dead in his tracks, Dave listened hard. He couldn't make out the words but he could hear two different female voices. Just as he was beginning to figure out where the sounds were coming from, Dave's phone rang once and vibrated in his pocket.

Cursing quietly, Dave moved away from the area, just in case his voice carried to wherever the women were. "What?" he growled.

"It's Rossi. I'm up in the helicopter. We are on our way to the coordinates you sent me. Have you seen anything else?" the older FBI agent said. He was talking in a loud voice. Clearly he was having trouble hearing over the thud of the helicopter blades.

"Don't land here. I think they're close and I don't want to tip them off. Let me know when you're on the ground," Dave said. He was scanning his immediate area. None of this was making sense. How could he hear the voices when there was nothing around? Were they up in the trees? No, that didn't make any sense at all. There were no thick clumps of bushes that they could be hiding behind. Dave's eyes ran over the foliage, the rocks, the sky, the ground. Then it dawned on him.

Quickly and quietly, Dave made his way back to the cabin. He was going to make a more thorough examination of that damned thing.

OOOOO

Knowing it was going to take them time to find a place where he could land, Rossi dialled Morgan's cell. With any luck at all, the younger agent was in an area that had cell service, after all Dave seemed to be.

After the third ring, Rossi was relieved to hear Morgan's deep voice. "Morgan," he said.

"The brother seems to think he's found something. He doesn't want us to come in in the helicopter. We're going to need to find a place to land. You may be able to get there faster than us. Be careful. Be quiet," Rossi instructed.

"Will do," Morgan said. He was itching to do something. His hands wanted to grab hold of a throat and squeeze it tightly. What was happening to Hotch and Reid? He needed to find out stop it. Quickly he filled the sheriff in. They were getting closer, Morgan could feel it.

OOOOO

Hotch kept his brown eyes closed. It was the only way he had to distance himself from what was being done to him. Mary had stripped him of all his clothes but she'd left the bandages in place. Clearly she wanted him alive. At least for a while longer.

Mary was frustrated when Aaron's body wouldn't respond to her ministrations. Her touch was becoming angry and rough. The pain in Aaron's body was getting worse, if that was possible. He wasn't sure how much more his mind could take before he passed out. Aaron wasn't sure he wanted to ever find that out.

"Well, I could give you a pill. That would fix things," Mary said more to herself than Hotch. She was sitting back on her haunches, scanning the elder agent's body. He really was beautiful but maybe a little too fuzzy for her choice. For a brief moment, she thought about waxing his body, taking away all the hair she didn't like. A smile played across her face. Now, that would be torture.

"No. I think it's time for something a little more imaginative," Mary decided. Grabbing hold of Hotch's hip, she rolled the man onto his stomach. Now, where did she leave that toy? Kicking Hotch in his injured side, she watched him writhe on the floor. That amused her for a moment. Then she turned and left the room. Where had Rachel hidden that thing?

OOOOO

The world was becoming less fuzzy. Jared could hear what was going on around him. He could feel what had been done to his body. Fury burned in his mind. Who the hell had done this? Where was Dave? Was he here too? Jared hoped not. It was bad enough that he had been used in just about every way possible. He didn't wish that on his brother too.

Jared opened his eyes ever so slightly. He saw a young man, a little bit younger than himself, sprawled under a quilt a few feet away from him. They were underground. He remembered that part. He was beginning to remember a lot of other things but he forcefully pushed them to the back of his mind. Now was not the time to start trying to deal with this.

Beyond the boy's shoulder he could make out the door. It was closed. That may be bad or good. Trying to be as casual as he could, Jared rolled over onto his other side. His eyes still barely open, he looked over the rest of the room. He saw Reid, curled up on his side, and Hotch still trembling on the ground a few feet away. Hotch was naked, as were they all Jared figured. Someone had taken the time to wrap a bandage around the man's shoulder.

Memories of a woman washing him, tending his wounds came back to Jared. Moving his head slightly, he looked over Reid and saw Rachel still huddled in the corner. He recognized the face immediately. The door opened behind him. Closing his eyes a bit more, Jared tried to concentrate on what was transpiring around him. He still didn't have complete control over his body. Until he did, he wanted to gather information, to figure out exactly what was going on and what he could do about it.

"Where did you put it, bitch?" a female voice demanded shrilly from behind Jared. Instantly, the young bounty hunter could hear the other words the woman had said. Hateful, cruel words while she did things to his body. Jared swallowed bile. He also recognized the voice from the bar. How could it be the same person?

"I burnt it," the woman huddled in the corner stated. "I wasn't going to let you use it on anyone else."

"Damn you," Mary growled. Standing in the middle of the room, she scanned the area, looking for something else to use.

"You can stop this, Mary," Rachel said from her corner. "Just because it happened to us when we were young doesn't mean you have to do it to them."

"Shut up!" Mary screeched. Then she looked at the gun in her hand. Well, that would work. She just needed to make sure she kept the safety on. Besides, that would be poetic justice. Hotch being raped by his own gun. Yeah, that really appealed to her. Grinning, she moved over to the man."Are you ready?"

Hotch didn't bother to reply. Nothing he said was going to stop her and he was still having trouble getting enough air in his lungs to waste any on her. The sparks of pain in his ribs were beginning to disappait. If only he could take some of the pressure off his genitals. He considered trying to shift his hips slightly but decided against it. Mary would see and do something to him. Besides, the way he was lying at least wasn't aggravating his shoulder.

Without waiting for an answer, Mary caught hold of Hotch's hip and tried to force his bottom half up onto his knees. Instantly aware of what she was trying to do, Hotch decided to be as little help as possible. He allowed his body to go completely limp. It made her job so much harder.

"You wouldn't dare," Rachel cried from the corner. It was one thing to clean up after the fact. It was another thing entirely to be present in the room while Mary was doing her worst. How could she even consider putting the gun there? The very thought chilled Rachel. Having to actually see it was beyond her capabilities to comprehend. In her shock, Rachel stood up and took two steps toward Mary.

"What did I tell you?" Mary growled. Well, she was facing Hotch's back so she pressed the gun against Hotch's right thigh. "Shall I continue?"

"If you're going to shoot someone, shoot me! Leave him alone! I can't sit back and watch you do that to him," Rachel said. To prove her point she took three more steps forward.

Following the woman's lead, Hotch rolled over, knocking Mary and the gun away from him with his legs. At the moment getting another bullet in him didn't seem so bad. On his back, Hotch tried to gain the upper edge on the sprawled woman. Then the barrel of his gun was pointing directly at the center of his forehead.

"Please, give me an excuse," Mary said. She had to give it to the FBI agent. She'd thought after all he'd been through that he wouldn't have had the strength to do what he'd just tried. Apparently she needed to spend more time with him. She smiled into the man's dark eyes while he gauged whether to press his luck. "I know Rachel likes patching you back up. Why don't we give her another thrill?"

Silently, Hotch watched Mary. He wanted to knock the gun out of her hand and beat her senseless with it but he knew his body wasn't up to it. Knocking her off of him had taken up the last of his energy. Lying in the dirt, he could do little more than to stare up at her.

"Mary, please stop this," Rachel pleaded. She had nearly reached Reid. The young man had begun to tremble and to thrash a little. From the fact that his eyes were closed, Rachel deduced that he was having a nightmare. His young face was twisted a little and he was mumbling quietly. "Look what you've done. You've caused this. You've scared these men for the rest of their lives. Is this what you want?"

"What I want is for you to shut the hell up!!" Mary yelled. She hadn't taken her eyes off Hotch. The pain and fear in his dark eyes was intoxicating. No wonder people liked to do this. Absently she waved the gun in Rachel's general direction before returning to Hotch's forehead.

"PLEASE! We need to stop this!" Rachel pleaded. She knelt down beside Reid. The lanky young man was having one hell of a nightmare. He was suddenly all arms and legs while he thrashed about under the quilt. Gently, she placed a hand on Reid's shoulder and tried to make comforting, shushing sounds. Her voice only seemed to make matters worse. Reid's brown eyes flew wide open and he seemed to be staring at Rachel with complete and utter fear.

Without thinking beyond comforting the young genius, Rachel moved to Hotch, caught hold of his good shoulder in her handcuffed hands and pulled him over to where Reid was still reacting badly.

"What are you doing?" Mary demanded as she was unceremoniously thrust out of the way. It was like the gun didn't even exist.

"You caused this. I'm going to try to stop it," Rachel replied. Once she got Aaron close to Reid, she moved the young genius around until his was lying with his back against Aaron's front. It was easier to do it that way than to find a position for Aaron that didn't irritate something. The last thing she did was to throw a blanket over Aaron's naked body. Then she turned to face Mary. "Are you going to shoot me?"

Mary thought for a moment. She was watching Hotch trying to comfort Reid while the boy continued to shake and thrash. It was a rather pathetic sight. Reid was clearly terrified even though he was also clearly asleep. Hotch only had the one good arm and he had to lie on top of it, his injured shoulder wouldn't take his weight. Regret began as a spark in her mind. Over top of the trembling, whimpering boy in front of her Mary saw the self-assured young man who'd eaten dinner in her bar. The spark became a candle flame.

For a brief moment Mary felt regret for what she'd done. She looked at Reid and Hotch and then Jared and Matt. They hadn't deserved what she'd done to them. Then the face of her kid brother played through her mind. Well, Matt and Jared might not deserve it but Reid and Hotch certainly did. So much for regret.

Raising the gun, Mary prepared to shoot Hotch with it. Taking careful aim at the back of the agent's head, Mary began to pull the trigger. She never got to finish the action. Staggering to his feet, Jared tackled her, dragging the smaller woman to the floor. It was all the energy he had. Watching Mary scramble back up to her feet and turn the gun toward him, Jared wondered if she was going to kill him.

With an inarticulate scream, Rachel sent her body flying toward Mary. This was her only chance. The older woman had her back toward her. Using the chain between the cuffs, Rachel pulled the barrel of the gun down and away from everyone. The gun discharged. The sound was thunderous, temporarily stunning her. Then Mary was there, the gun still grasped tightly in her hands. She swung the gun at Rachel's face, sending the younger woman crashing to the floor, unconscious.

"You are such a pain in the ass," Mary breathed. Walking over to Jared, who was trying to get to his feet again, she absently struck him in the side of the head with the gun. It was time for more medicine. Satisfied that the tall young man wasn't going to try that again anytime soon, Mary turned back toward Hotch and Reid.

Finding a strength he hadn't know he had at this point, Hotch had pulled Reid and himself until their backs were against the wall. He'd wrapped the quilts around both of them and was protectively holding Reid in his one good arm. Watching Mary carefully, he spoke quietly into Reid's ear, trying to comfort him. Gradually, Reid's terror abated, as did his trembling. Heaving a great sigh, he settled against Hotch's body a little better and resumed an untroubled sleep.

"Aw, that's so cute," Mary grated. She was pushing a valium into Jared's lax lips. She repeated the process with Matt. She considered trying to get past Hotch to give one to Reid. Then she decided to leave him. If Reid wasn't drugged, maybe he'd be more of a participant in current events. Smiling, she stepped outside the room to find water and food. They were all going to need their strength.

OOOOO

Standing in the middle of the cabin, Dave heard the report of the gun. Watching closely, he saw a tiny avalanche of dirt slide into the ground. Quietly, he stepped over to the area and ever so gently moved the dirt away. Within seconds, he had the corner of the trap door uncovered. Finally.


	24. Chapter 24

_Thank you so very much for all the reviews! I love hearing from you and it really keeps me involved in this story. Mind you it's sort of developed a life of its own, even when I'm at work I'm thinking about it, writing it. No wonder it's coming out so fast!_

_Enjoy chapter twenty four._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Should he wait for the FBI? Dave wondered. The need to find Jared, to know that he was alive and safe burned in him like a torch. He never liked it when the two of them were separated for long. It had all ready been far too long. He knew instinctively that Jared wasn't going to be in good shape. If he was okay, he would have found a way to escape.

Growling quietly, Dave found the ring to pull the trap door open. As quietly as he possibly could, Dave heaved on the trap door. If Jared was down there he wasn't waiting for back up to get here. The hinges groaned a lot louder than Dave would have liked.

The area below the trap door had a dirt floor. Dave would have to stick his head down there to see any more. That didn't seem like a brilliant plan. Neither did climbing down the wooden ladder he could see. But his brother was down there, he could feel it. He'd be damned if he was going to leave Jared at the mercies of that crazy woman.

His heart in his throat, Dave leaned into the hole to get a look at what was down there other than dirt. Expecting to be shot at any second, Dave got his eyes just below the ceiling and looked around. He saw the hallway and the doors leading into the rooms. Damn but this place was extensive. Someone had spent a lot of hours digging. The one thing Dave didn't see was another person.

Satisfied that he was okay to climb down, Dave brought his head up, sat on his butt and prepared to climb down the ladder. The first two rungs were all right but as his foot hit the third one he heard a gunshot from below. Instinctively Dave dove off the ladder and back into the cabin.

Still trying to catch his breath at his close call, Dave heard someone on the ladder. Again working on instinct, he pushed the trap door closed. He didn't want to leave Jared down there but he wasn't so sure he wanted to face whoever was climbing up either.

Then he realized his mistake when he heard bolts slide into place on the underside of the trap door. Feeling incredibly responsible and forlorn at leaving his brother behind, Dave climbed to his feet. The only thing that made him feel a little better was hearing a vehicle pull up outside the cabin. He glanced over his shoulder and recognized the sheriff's SUV. Why the hell hadn't he waited?

Shame burned on Dave's face as he stepped out of the cabin to wait for Sheriff Hicks and Agent Morgan to join him in the doorway.

"What happened?" Sheriff Hicks said. The young bounty hunter was clearly upset about something. He just hoped it didn't include seeing his brother and the others dead inside the cabin.

"I found a trap door. They're below us but they know I'm here," Dave admitted. The blush was travelling up to his ears. What had he done?

Behind Sheriff Hicks, Dave could hear Morgan cursing a blue streak. It took him a few moments to collect himself before he was able to pull his cell phone out of its case and apprise Rossi of the situation.

"Did you get a look of what's underneath the trap door?" Hicks asked. He was trying to get the kid thinking about positives, not negatives. At this point the fact that he'd narrowed the search to underneath a trap door was absolutely spectacular.

"Yeah, I did. There's a wooden ladder leading down to a hallway. I saw four doors for sure, two on either side of the hallway. I don't know what the hell the tunnels were created for but someone spent a lot of time on them," Dave responded. He had the feeling he was lucky he couldn't hear Rossi's part of the conversation going on behind Hicks. Even from this distance, the older man sounded angry.

"Three of the doors were ajar. The fourth one, closest to the ladder was closed. I didn't see anyone when I looked so I thought I was okay to slip down there," Dave said.

"There are only a few cabins out in this area that were used to hide booze or slaves. Apparently this must have been one of them. Chances are when it was part of the Underground Railroad it wasn't nearly this sophisticated. The booze runners liked their comforts," Hicks stated. He didn't know if that was the way things were all over the country but here, in his county, it held true. It also made their job a hell of a lot harder.

"Rossi is just a few minutes away. He wants us to wait for him," Morgan said as he joined the men in the doorway. It gave him the willies to think that Reid and Hotch were such a short distance away and yet unreachable. Why hadn't Dave waited?

OOOOO

Her hands full of water bottles and sandwiches, Mary turned to go back to the cell when she saw the boots coming down the ladder. Mary had to juggle the items in her arms to pull the gun out of her pants. She'd hoped to shoot the bastard in the foot, to really screw him up but her aim still wasn't very good. But it worked anyway. The person went back up. Dropping the food, she darted up the ladder and was grateful when it slammed shut just above her head. After that it only took a moment to slide all four latches into place.

Whoever was up there was going to have to break their way through the trap door and that was going to take time, especially if he didn't have an axe with him. Climbing back down, Mary picked up her stuff and headed into the cell. She still had some playing to do.

OOOOO

Hotch had been dozing lightly. The violence done to his body and loss of blood were conspiring against him. His dreams were scattered and disturbing. Once again he was a young boy at the hands of his father. There was no connection between the memories. In one his father was whipping him with his belt. In the next he was using his fists. The only common theme was the smell of fear, sweat and alcohol.

The gunshot brought him back to reality. Gasping at the suddenness of the transition, Hotch scanned his immediate area, expecting to find Mary standing over him with his run pointed at his head. Instead he found Jared and Rachel still crumpled into piles on the floor and Matt closer to the door. He supposed that if he had any energy at all he should throw a blanket over Jared. The young man was trembling with cold.

A sound beside him brought Hotch's attention to Reid. His subordinate was still pressed up against his side. It hurt like hell but with only one arm, it was the best Hotch could do. Looking down into Reid's too young face, Hotch saw pain twist his features before the spasm seemed to pass. It was immediately followed by another one. It was then he noticed just how shallow Reid's breathing was.

The young genius was in a lot of pain and Hotch wasn't entirely sure why. He tried to shift Reid a little, to make him more comfortable. His ministrations were met with a loud moan and Reid's face twisting again. Hotch waited but the moans kept coming and the obvious pain didn't ease.

Scared and concerned, Hotch lifted Reid's blanket and visually took in his injuries. For the first time he noticed the furrow of a gunshot wound down his leg and the heavy bandages Rachel had used on Reid's hip. It must have happened while he was unconscious. Hotch had absolutely no memory of seeing the woman do this.

Still not entirely sure what was wrong with Reid, Hotch carefully rolled his subordinate onto his back and gently laid his head on his right thigh. The last thing he needed was Reid's boney head resting against his all ready sore and swollen genitals. Immediately Reid's face smoothed out and his breathing returned to something close to normal.

Hotch thought momentarily about how he was going to explain his wounds. None of the explanations he came up with would keep him out of the therapist's chair. That was the last place he wanted to be.

The Unit Chief looked over at the other inhabitants of the cell. They were all a mess. If this didn't end soon he wasn't sure how many of them were going to survive it. His brown eyes came to rest on Rachel's pale, still face. The woman had risked her life to protect him. He wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that. Maybe after some quiet reflection with a therapist he might figure it out. Then again, maybe not. t

The door to the cell swung open and Mary stepped inside. Apparently she hadn't been the one that had been shot at. The fact that Hotch almost forgot about the gunshot indicated to him just how much trouble he was really in. Trying to ignore the swell of panic that arose with that thought, Hotch watched the woman as she opened a bottle of water and took several swallows of the clear contents.

"Are you thirsty?" Mary asked. Hotch was the only one awake at the moment so he got her undivided attention.

Glaring at the woman, Hotch refused to answer. Suddenly he realized just how thirsty he really was but he wasn't about to let her know that. When she stepped toward him, the bottle still in her hand, Hotch involuntarily tried to move back. Hotch all ready had his back against the wall and so had nowhere to go. The fact that he'd tried caused the panic to get a little bit worse. What had he allowed this woman to do to him?

"Don't worry. I don't have anything contagious," Mary stated. Nonchalantly, Mary held the half empty water bottle toward him. She knew enough not to get too close. The man was a well trained FBI agent after all. Against his better judgement, Hotch reached out and took the bottle from her.

Bracing the bottle between his knees, Hotch screwed the cap off and quickly put the bottle to his lips just in case she changed her mind. After two sips, he put the bottle to Reid's half open lips and dribbled some into his mouth. Reflexively, Reid drank the liquid until the contents were gone.

"There. I'm not so bad after all, eh?" Mary said. Smiling, she moved over to Rachel. Grabbing the woman's nearest arm, she pulled the larger woman back into her corner. It took a lot out of her, Rachel was heavy. Sweating, she crossed over to Jared. She knelt down beside the young man and untwisted his long limbs. Her efforts revealed his well muscled, hairless chest and the regions below.

Thoughts played through Mary's mind. There were so many things that she could do to him. She shook them off though. It wouldn't be as much fun with him unconscious. At least if he was drugged he still responded to some extent. That left only Hotch. Well, that was okay. Absently, Mary threw a stray blanket over Jared's prone body and stood up.

"You killed my brother," Mary stated conversationally as she started to pace around the room. "You're going to have to pay for that."

"How could I kill your brother? I was here with you," Hotch asked. He knew he wasn't up to sparing mentally with the woman but he was hoping that she'd eventually see reason. Besides, the longer he kept her talking the less time she had to do things before Rachel came to again.

"That doesn't matter. It was one of your agents that did it. That makes it your fault," Mary said. While she paced she fingered the gun. It would be so easy to point it at the dark haired man and pull the trigger. With any luck the wound she inflicted would be fatal.

"The only reason my agent was here was because you kidnapped Reid and Jared," Hotch responded. He placed his left hand on Reid's chest. He wanted the younger man to know he was there but he also wanted to know for sure that Reid was still breathing and that his heart was still beating. The subtle lub dub of Reid's heart kept him grounded.

"I didn't start all of this. The bitch in the corner did. She's the one who was buying men's underwear at the department store. I knew she didn't have a boyfriend. All I did was ask who they were for," Mary said. While she paced Hotch had the impression that her attention was turned inward, that she wasn't really seeing what was going on around her.

"When she showed me Matt for the first time I couldn't believe what I was seeing. He was so young, so beautiful, so perfect and so completely dependent on her. Wants and needs that I'd long ago buried came rushing to the surface. I had to touch him, to make love to him, to do things that had played through my fantasies over the years. I was fine before I saw him.

"Now I can't seem to stop. It's all I think about. It's all I want to do. My bar means nothing. Your life means nothing. What the hell did that bitch turn me into?" Mary's pacing had become faster, more frantic the longer she'd talked.

In her agitation, Mary pulled the gun out of her pants and was waving it around. So much for calming her down, Hotch thought.

"I see what you mean. Clearly all of this is Rachel's fault," Hotch agreed. Arguing with her was only going to make things worse. While Rachel was responsible for kidnapping Matt, Hotch never considered her to be responsible for the horrific things Mary had done. That was all on her. But now was not the time to tell her that.

"Don't play mind games with me, fed," Mary growled. She waved the gun in Hotch's direction. She was spiralling out of control and she knew it. She had to do what she wanted to do before she lost it completely. "Now, you and I are going to spend some quality time together. Hopefully this time Rachel won't get in the way."


	25. Chapter 25

_Thank you, thank you, and thank you for the reviews. I admit I've become a bit of a review junky, the more reviews I get the faster I seem to write. Not that I don't write if I don't get reviews. Well, that doesn't make a lot of sense. Must be getting late (hangs head and shuffles off to bed). ;)_

_I hope you enjoy the next chapter!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

"This isn't your fault," Rossi said to Dave. The two men were standing outside the cabin while Morgan and Sheriff Hicks did a more thorough search of the building.

"I should have waited," Dave said. Shame had finally stopped burning in his stomach and mind but he still felt like crap. He'd made things that much harder.

"People can spend a great deal of their lives worrying about the 'should haves'. Let's deal in the here and now. Now we need to find a way to get down there," Rossi tried to reassure the younger man. He chose to not add 'before Mary kills everyone below'. Somehow he figured that wasn't going to help with the man's guilt.

"Sure, man, whatever you say," Dave said. He wasn't comfortable talking about feelings, especially with a man he barely knew. "What the hell are they looking for?"

"A way in that doesn't involve the trap door. They've all ready pulled up a section of the floor but the ground is too hard to dig in with what tools we have," Dave stated. He understood why Dave had chosen to change the subject and chose to allow him.

"You know? When I was over in that direction, I heard voices. I didn't get a chance to explore it much but there might be a tunnel or something over there," Dave said, his dull eyes suddenly taking a livelier lustre.

"Show me," Rossi said.

OOOOO

"So, what are we going to do to pass the time?" Mary purred. She still held the gun in one hand and was advancing toward Hotch.

For his part, Hotch carefully lifted Reid's head off of his leg and shuffled sideways. He wanted to get as far away from the young profiler as possible. The last thing Reid needed at the moment was another injury. Besides, he needed to have a little elbow room. "What were you shooting at, Mary?" he asked.

"Rats," Mary responded. "They're going to play with you later on."

"I don't believe you. Are my people outside? Is that what you were shooting at?" Hotch pressed. He was hoping to either distract her or push her all the way around the bend.

"Well, I'd hope your people would wear better shoes," Mary stated. She was standing one foot in front of Hotch's feet. He'd tried to get up to his feet but had again been unsuccessful. There had simply been too much damage done to his body. The loss of blood from the bullet wound certainly didn't help.

"Lie down," Mary ordered. To emphasis she waved the gun in the direction she wanted him to go, away from Reid. She was still trying to decide what to do with the man. This was going to be her last chance.

"No," Aaron said. He was tired to letting Mary push him around, doing things to him that he'd never let anyone do before. Now that Reid as at least relatively safe, he was ready to take a stand. Well, a stand from a sitting position anyway.

"Oh, you're being feisty. I like feisty," Mary responded. She took another step closer, putting her in range of Aaron's feet. She had the gun up and aimed at his chest. Absently she considered just pulling the trigger. The honest truth was that she'd never killed anyone before and she wasn't sure she wanted to start now.

Growling to himself, Aaron managed to get up to his hand and knees for a whole three seconds. Laughing, Mary brought her foot back and kicked in him the left side. Hotch collapsed onto his stomach. His breath rushed out of his body in a whoosh. Sparks of light flickered before his eyes as the Unit Chief desperately tried to draw air into his oxygen starved lungs.

Mary caught hold of Aaron's injured shoulder and roughly rolled him over onto his back. With a flourish she pulled the blanket that he'd used as cover off and threw it as far away as she could. Smiling, she looked down on Aaron's naked, heaving form. He truly was beautiful. But not for long.

Stepping up to Hotch's side, Mary pulled the bandages off his shoulder. The man's dark eyes were focused on her, watching her every move while he continued to try to recover. Still smiling, Mary ran her hand from his chest to below his hips. She revelled in the sensation of his skin and his other parts. No wonder men never had sex with her more than once. She enjoyed the feel just a little too much. All ready welts with spots of blood were appearing under her fingers. The fact that she dug her finger nails into Aaron's flesh thrilled her.

Ignoring the pain now that Hotch had managed a whole five breaths, the Unit Chief brought his good arm up and struck the woman in the throat. He was trying to crush her larynx but his aim was a little off and he didn't have much strength behind the blow. Mary was caught completely unprepared. Gagging, she rolled away from Hotch and tried to not throw up.

Before Mary had a chance to recover from the blow, a loud voice boomed from above. "This is Special Agent Derek Morgan. We have you surrounded. Come outside with your hands up in the air."

"Well, that's rather cliché, don't you think?" Mary gasped as she turned to face Hotch. "Let's give them something else to think about."

Not bothering to warn the dark haired man, Mary moved toward Hotch, rolled him over onto his back and dug her fingers into the exit wound.

The pain was beyond anything he'd experience so far. A scream was ripped from Hotch's throat as he writhed on the ground. Mary dug her fingers in a little deeper, producing a longer scream from the man.

"How does that feel?" Mary asked. She was leaning over Hotch's back, her fingers slick with his blood, whispering in his ear.

Another scream was the only answer Hotch was about to produce as Mary's fingers probed and dug.

OOOOO

Rossi and Dave were standing in the clearing where the young bounty hunter had heard the voices. A closer examination of the area didn't uncover where the sounds had come from. Then Hotch screamed. The sound of his friend's torment sent a chill through Rossi's spine. The older man was rooted to the spot. But Dave continued looking over the place.

"Here," Dave said. He'd located the epicentre of the sound. It was in a rocky area of the clearing. There was no obvious hole but Hotch's screaming could be plainly heard.

Tearing his mind away from his friend's torment, Rossi joined Dave to stare at the rocks. Aaron's screams were even harder to listen to here because they came through so clear. Unshed tears tried to blur Rossi's vision while he began moving the rocks aside. Maybe they were hiding something.

Three layers of rocks later, the two men had uncovered a narrow tube that was sticking up in the dirt. It was three times the size of the average straw. It was too small to see through but wide enough to hear perfectly.

"Had enough?" a female voice asked just loud enough to be heard over Hotch. He'd stopped screaming but was moaning and panting in the after effects of Mary's attention.

"That's the bartender from the bar, Mary," Dave breathed. If it were humanly possible he'd reach through the tube and strangle the woman. "Where's Jared?"

"Just because we can't hear him doesn't mean he isn't there," Rossi tried to reassure the younger man. They were speaking in whispers, just in case the sound moved both ways. "I'm going to go get the sheriff. You stay here."

"Sure thing," Dave replied. He knelt down beside the tube staring at it as if he could see through it to the underground tunnels below.

OOOOO

"Can we dig without Mary hearing us?" Sheriff Hicks asked. Rossi had filled him and Morgan in on what Dave had found. Morgan continued to speak through the megaphone. He was trying to keep Mary occupied or at least intimidated while they came up with a plan. It was better than sitting around waiting for something to happen.

"We can't see any light through the tube so it must make at least one turn. If we can dig without getting too close to it we would be able to get into the room Mary and Hotch are in," Rossi said. It wasn't a great plan but it was better than trying to break in the trap door, especially since they found it had a lining of steel between the layers of wood. Whoever had built this place didn't want to take a chance of anyone dropping in unannounced.

"It's worth a try," Hicks stated. He got on the radio and ordered more men to the area along with any digging tools they could find.

OOOOO

Images, feelings and sounds were flashing through Reid's mind. Things he didn't want to see, hear or feel. Pain permeated everything, even his dreams. His perceptions in the dreams were skewed. Objects were out of focus or not the right size or dimension. Was he drugged again? Reid was desperate. That was the last thing he needed. The dreams were bad enough.

Earlier Reid could have sworn that Hotch was nearby, watching over him. Now, though, he was alone, lying under a blanket, completely naked. The memories were trying to surface, to tell him how he came to be here and in such pain but he shoved them away. He wasn't sure he was ready to deal with them yet. Not before the pain was gone. Not before he had clothes on.

Reid hated being naked. His clothes were a physical shield against the outside world. Without them he felt vulnerable and young. That was another thing Reid hated, feeling young. Pain would be a close third. Where was Hotch?

Reid tried to open his eyes but they refused to cooperate. He was forced to lie exactly as he was because it was the position that caused the least amount of pain. Dimly he could hear voices. One was Hotch, the other was the bartender. The woman that whispered horrible things in his ear while she... No, he wasn't going to think about that. He tried to move his hand, his finger with no response at all. It was like he was trapped inside his own body.

Then Hotch started screaming. To escape the awful sound, Reid escaped back into his mind. He couldn't help Hotch, he couldn't help himself. Reid was completely helpless and he hated that too. Then his finger moved.


	26. Chapter 26

_Thank you ever so much for the great reviews! I'm always so excited to hear from readers to find out what they're enjoying about the story and what they hate. Sometimes my muse even listens!!_

_This chapter is a little short but it seemed the like appropriate place to end it. I hope you enjoy it! I promise to update again before the weekend is over. Maybe even tomorrow. _

_Thanks again for taking the time to review. It means the world to me, honest! Also, thank you to everyone who's added my story to their favourites and story alerts. That always makes me smile too._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

"What the hell is this thing?" Morgan asked in a quiet voice as he looked down at the tube. It didn't make sense. Sound would travel downward as well as upward. What could be the possible benefit of that?

"I think it's from when this cabin was used to store liquor. I've heard stories where the bootlegs would use these things to have people place orders and then pick them up at the cabin. Sometimes they were also used to warn the bootlegs when the feds came to raid the place," Sheriff Hicks replied in a similarly quiet voice. "I've never actually seen one before though."

"Hotch's voice was coming out of it. He must be in the room this thing leads to. Can we dig a few feet away without Mary hearing us?" Rossi asked. The sound of Hotch's screaming still reverberated through his head. He wasn't sure if he was more frightened by the fact that the screaming had stopped or by the relief he felt at the lack of sound.

"Quite honestly, we're not sure but getting through the floors of the cabin are out of the question. The only way to do that would be to use dynamite. Obviously not an option," Hicks stated. He nodded at three of his men who were standing by with shovels in their hands. On their boss's sign, they thrust their shovels into the ground and began digging, discarding the soil into a heap three feet away.

OOOOO

The world came back slowly for Rachel. Her head felt like it was now several sizes too big and hurt like hell. If this was what the men had gone through under Mary's ministrations she was doubly ashamed she'd allowed it to continue for so long. For several moments that shame tried to bear her down into the dark despair of her soul. What kind of monster was she? It took almost of physical effort to claw her way back up into the light. She just hoped there was some way to redeem herself once she got there.

Dimly she became aware of Hotch screaming. His voice was ragged, full of pain and suffering. The sound stopped her blood cold in her veins. For a split second Rachel thought about staying within the confines of her mind. She was safe there. She didn't have to deal with Mary and her boys. Then silence filled the room. That was even worse. She had to know what was going on.

Forcing her eyes open, Rachel looked around. It took a moment to figure out she was staring at the dirt wall of the cell. Her vision was a little out of focus and movement was torment as her head sent shock waves of nausea crashing through her system. Ignoring it, Rachel slowly rolled onto her other side so she had a better view of the cell.

It was then Rachel realized part of the reason why she was having such a hard time seeing was because the kerosene lamp was flickering. It was getting low on fuel but it worked well enough to show her what was going on. It sent wild shadows over the room, further aggravating Rachel's headache. Squinting, she scanned the area.

Mary was standing over Hotch. The Unit Chief was white as a sheet, his wane face contorted in silent pain. When Mary sat back, her hands came into view. They were soaked in bright red blood. Bile rose in Rachel's throat. Hadn't Mary put these men through enough all ready? Jared was crumpled on the floor, a blanket thrown haphazardly over him. It looked like Matt hadn't moved at all. That scared her.

Moving as quietly as she could, Rachel tried to gain her feet. She'd strangle the older woman with the chains from her handcuffs. It was the only real weapon she had. She'd seen it done often enough on TV and the movies. How hard could it be?

For the first time in her life, Rachel was fully prepared to kill another human being. It was almost surreal when she thought too hard about it. She had the feeling that she wouldn't even really feel bad about it. One glance at Hotch's unconscious, sweat slickened face and she knew she wouldn't.

As Rachel finally reached her feet, movement behind Mary caught her attention. The woman was so completely focused on Hotch that she didn't notice Rachel or Reid. She was bent over Hotch's inert body, poking her slick fingers into the exit wound. Even unconscious, Hotch shuttered and moaned in response to the additional trauma Mary was inflicting on him. She never even noticed that Reid was awake.

The tall, thin young man had forced his protesting body into a seated position. The strain he was under was plain on his long, narrow face. Rachel's stomach muscles clenched in sympathy to the pain she knew he was experiencing. The boy had a strength she hadn't imagined. Gripped tightly in his shaking hands was Hotch's gun.

While Mary had been torturing Aaron, she'd put the gun down beside her. She needed both of her hands to ravage his wound and the gun was in the way. It had never occurred to her that someone would wake up and try to use the weapon on her.

"Leave him alone!" Reid growled his voice low and scratchy. He was probably dehydrated but with everything else that was going on, that was a minor detail. His hip screamed bloody murder at him while he stayed upright. He would have preferred standing over the woman but that was out of the question. All ready his vision was dimming as his mind tried to protect him from the pain ravaging his body.

"Well, well, you woke up," Mary said after she recovered from the initial shock. A smile spread over her face as she faced the young profiler. She held out her hands to him so he could see the red liquid congealing on her skin. The boy visibly paled but the gun didn't move. He had it pointed at her head. "Ready for another go with my toy?"

At those hateful words memories of what Mary had done to him came crashing back into Reid's mind. The gun trembled worse and began to drop while he relived the humiliation and terror of what had been done to him. With a supreme mental effort, Reid pushed the images, thoughts and sensations away. Now was not the time to deal with that. He pulled the gun back up, despite the trembling that was getting worse in his arms.

Seeing the gun move, Mary tried to inch her way closer. The kid was weak as a kitten. It wouldn't take much to disarm him. It took a lot of balls for him to hold the weapon on her but she was still pissed off. How dare he try to protect himself and Hotch?

"You're under arrest," Reid said, his voice quickly losing what strength it had had. It took every ounce of will he possessed to keep himself from crumbling to the floor completely. That wouldn't help Hotch or the others. It sure as hell wouldn't help him.

Over Mary's right shoulder he saw another woman approaching her as quietly as she could manage. Her hands were up, in front of her, showing him the handcuffs. That didn't track but she was staring at Mary, not him, so he chose to let her try to help. He wasn't sure how much longer he could stay upright.

At Reid's words, Mary let out a loud laugh. It genuinely amused her to think that Reid, the federal agent she'd raped with a sex toy was trying to arrest her. Ignoring the gun entirely, Mary struck out quickly and pounded Reid in the hip.

Given his present state, Reid wasn't able to drag his eyes away from the other woman fast enough to react to Mary's actions. The moment Mary hit his hip bone, pain erupted from it, blinding him to everything going on around him while he fought to stay conscious. He wasn't even aware of Mary pulling the gun out of his nerveless hands.

"Well, it's been fun but all fun things must come to an end," Mary stated as she turned the gun on Reid. The kid was completely unaware of what she was doing. It wouldn't be much fun to shoot him because he'd never know what hit him. That thought almost stopped her. Then she remembered Reid trying to arrest her. She remembered what Reid and Hotch's compatriots had done to her kid brother. Carefully she aimed the gun at his right eye.

She never got to pull the trigger. Rachel jumped her from behind, trying to wrap the chain between her handcuffs around the front of Mary's neck. Having never done that action before, Rachel was clumsy at it. It looked so much easier in the movies. "Get off me, you bitch!" Mary shouted while she grappled with Rachel's arms.

A scuffle broke out between the women. They fought over control of the gun. They tried to knock each other senseless, anything to put an end to this. Mary wound up lying on top of Hotch while she and Rachel fought. Their grunts of exertion and cursing were the only sounds in the room. Reid had lost his battle to stay conscious and was sprawled unaware on the ground. Hotch's moans and groans, trying to ride the pain flowing through his body, were lost in the cacophony.

Just as Mary got the upper hand because she could spread her hands further than twelve inches, the kerosene lamp sputtered its last and momentarily plunged the room into darkness. Jamming her elbow into Rachel's face, Mary dislodged the larger woman from on top of her. Then she quickly rolled away, toward the door.

While her eyes tried to adjust to the small amount of light filtering in from the hole in the ceiling, Rachel completely lost contact with Mary. She could hear shuffling sounds and then what sounded like the door opening. Three heartbeats later, Rachel's eyes cleared. Quickly she scanned the cell to find that she was alone with the men.

"Mary?" Rachel called out while she gained her feet and stepped outside into the hallway. A fast search of the other rooms didn't reveal the older woman. There was no way Mary had gone up the ladder, Rachel would have heard it. There were no other places in the tunnels for the older woman to hide. And yet, she was nowhere to be found. "What the hell?"


	27. Chapter 27

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

Mary was going to have to take care of herself. The most important thing at the moment was getting the men in the other room help. Events were a little fuzzy to her but Rachel hoped that by climbing out of the tunnels that she would find help.

Climbing the ladder to the trap door, Rachel pulled back the bolts and pushed the door open. Before she took the last few steps to the floor above, she paused long enough to wipe blood off of her face. When Mary had pistol whipped her, she'd left a long gash from her cheek across her nose to above her left eye. The wound was painful but she ignored it. It was minor compared to what the men below had suffered.

Wiping her hand on her pants, Rachel stuck her head above the lip of the trap door and found a rifle barrel pointed directly at her. Her knees went weak both with fear and relief. Beyond the length of the rifle, she found Deputy Jack Cullen. She'd graduated with the police officer from high school. It was disturbing to see the intensity of his brown eyes directed at her.

"Climb out of there, slowly," Jack ordered. He was trying to hide the surprise from his face and voice. Of all the people he expected to come out of the trap door, Rachel hadn't even been on the list. Watching the woman carefully come out of the hole, Jack thumbed his shoulder mike. "Sheriff, the trap door is open. Rachel Carson is in custody."

On the other end of the line, Sheriff Hicks was momentarily stunned. What the hell did Rachel have to do with all of this? The woman was well known for her love of the outdoors and working with plants at the garden centre where she worked. He'd never had any problem with her in a professional or personal capacity. She was one of the nicest women he knew. What the hell was going on around here?

"We'll be right there," Hicks finally responded. "Keep that trap door open under any circumstances."

The two FBI agents and the other deputies had heard the static filled voice. All of them had stopped their digging and turned toward the sheriff. "Ten-four," Jack stated.

"Let's get going before Mary or anyone else tries to close that door again," Hicks said as he led the way back to the cabin. Dave hadn't bothered to wait for the sheriff's okay. At the first indication that the door was open, he was sprinting toward the structure.

OOOOO

"Please, Jack. There are four men down there that need medical attention. I don't know where Mary is but I don't trust her to leave them alone," Rachel pleaded. Jack didn't have to handcuff her as she all ready wore the metal bracelets. That didn't make much sense unless Mary didn't trust her. That may work for her later on in the investigation.

"How bad off are they?" Jack asked. He still had his weapon aimed at the woman as she stood in front of him. Shame coloured her cheeks and neck, under that she was surprisingly pale. That made the blood on her face stand out all the more.

"Bad. Agent Hotchner has been shot. He's lost a lot of blood. Agent Reid has a possible broken hip, a bullet graze along his leg and other wounds. Jared has been pistol whipped, struck with a car and drugged for an extended period of time. Matt has a few minor injuries but he's also been drugged for a very long time," Rachel said.

Rachel kept glancing outside the cabin door, looking for the Calvary and EMT's. They needed help now. Leaving the men alone in the cell was filling her body with nervous energy. She needed to get back to them before Mary got her grubby hands on them again.

"How long have they been drugged?" Jack asked. He kept his rifle aimed at Rachel while he sidled up to the hole to peek below.

"Matt, since I kidnapped him at the jamboree," Rachel admitted. Her head dropped. She couldn't face the man that she knew even slightly. How had her life gone so damned wrong? "Jared since Mary ran him and Spencer over with her car."

Thumbing his mike again, Jack called in the helicopters. They were going to have to get these men out of the area quickly if they were to survive their injuries. There was still no sign of his superior. Frustrated, Jack made an executive decision. He slipped the rifle strap over his shoulder and pulled out his service revolver. "Show me."

OOOOO

It took some doing but Jack managed to climb down the ladder while maintaining his grip on his gun. He kept his weapon aimed in Rachel's general direction. The woman appeared to be genuinely concerned for the men below and deeply ashamed of her part in the whole affair. But, that didn't mean that the seasoned deputy was going to trust her. For all he knew she was looking for a new addition to her collection of men.

"They're in here," Rachel said as she paced toward the cell. Relief flowed through her as she stepped inside to find the four men were still alone. Not paying any attention to Jack or his gun, she moved over to Hotch's still form and pressed one of the blankets against his shoulder. Blood was staining the dirt beneath him.

"Shit," Jack breathed. The smell was almost overwhelming. It was a combination of unwashed bodies, sweat, fear, blood and vomit. Jack's eyes watered in response or it was from what they were being forced to witness. The sight of the four men sprawled on the floor in obvious pain was almost worse. Standing at the cell entrance, the deputy ran a hand through his dark brown hair and exhaled a long breath. Absently, he holstered his service revolver. He was going to need both hands.

"Where the hell are you?" Sheriff Hick's voice growled from Jack's shoulder. He hadn't even heard the men enter the cabin above.

"I'm down in the tunnels, sir," Jack replied. Picking the nearest man, who happened to be Matt, Jack knelt beside him and began a cursory exam. The first thing he noticed was that the young man was naked under the quilt. A shiver passed through Jack's being. "There' still no sign of Mary but I didn't want to leave the wounded alone."

The only response was the sound of booted feet thundering down the wooden ladder. Jack glanced up, his hand resting on his holstered weapon, until he saw Dave burst into the room, followed very shortly by Morgan and Rossi.

"Jared?" Dave breathed as he raced to his brother's side. Hearing his brother's voice, Jared shifted slightly and mumbled but didn't come to. Wrapping the blanket around Jared's body securely, Dave pulled his too tall brother into his arms and cradled him against his chest. Jared was alive. Nothing else mattered. The brothers would deal with the rest as it became necessary. For now, Dave just enjoyed the feel of his brother's warm body in his arms, knowing he was safe.

Rossi and Morgan split up without discussion. Automatically Rossi headed for Hotch while Morgan made a b-line for Spencer. As he knelt down beside his young associate, Morgan pulled the blanket back up over his naked body. His worse fears were realized. Awful things had happened in this hell hole. He placed his large hand on Reid's head and smoothed down the younger man's unruly brown hair. Reid really needed a bath. They all did.

Rage surged through Morgan's muscular body. How could anyone do this to Reid, of all the people in the world? Reid was the smartest, most gentle person Derek knew. The thought of the things that had probably gone on in this dirt hole raced through his mind. Growling under his breath, Derek scanned the area. His dark eyes came to rest on Rachel who was still hunched over Hotch, trying to staunch the blood seeping from his shoulder. It took every ounce of self control the agent possessed to keep from going over to her and beating her senseless.

Feeling the intense hatred directed at her, Rachel lifted her head to glance at Derek. Bile rose in her throat as she dropped her gaze. She couldn't meet the agent's dark eyes. She wasn't sure she'd ever be able to look anyone in the eye again. She felt like the lowest of the low. Suddenly pressing the cloth into Hotch's injured shoulder was the most importantly thing in her world. Everything else required too much thinking, too much feeling.

Carefully getting down to his knees, Rossi placed a hand on Hotch's head. His Unit Chief was lying on the ground on his stomach. The woman Rossi assumed must be Rachel Carson was hunched over Aaron's shoulder, pressing a cloth against it. The cloth was covered with blood and only seemed to be getting worse.

The urge to push Rachel away from his friend pressed against Rossi's consciousness. That would be irrational and probably hurt Aaron worse than leaving her where she was. Rachel wouldn't look up at him. She kept her head down, pointed at Aaron's shoulder and the compress.

Satisfied that all four men were accounted for, Sheriff Hicks directed three of his deputies to secure the tunnels while he and the others moved into the room to help as they could.

"How are they?" Hicks asked as he came up to Jack. The deputy had just finished a quick exam. While some of the injuries were obviously sexual in nature, he couldn't find anything to explain the young man's deep sleep. Then he remembered what Rachel had said about the drugs.

"This one is a little dehydrated and has some superficial wounds. I think he's been drugged with something," Jack replied. Looking over his shoulder he directed the next comment to the woman a short distance away. "Rachel. What were you giving them?"

"I started out with Gravol on Matt," Rachel said, still not lifting her head. The need to disappear into a hole in the earth kept playing through her mind. "Mary brought Valium. At least that's what she told me it was. We dosed them regularly with Mary's pills. She dosed them a short while ago."

"Jack. You should stop questioning her until we read her her rights," Hicks stated.

"I waive my rights," Rachel said, her voice very quiet. "I'm guilty. I'll sign anything to write up."

"How does Mary fit into this?" Hicks asked. He had to know.

"I was buying new clothes for Matt the third day I had him. Mary caught me with a package of men's underwear. It all spiralled out of control from there. Where is the ambulance?" Rachel asked. Hotch was coming around. He was beginning to shift under her hand and low moans were being forced out with each exhalation. The man needed medical attention and pain medication right now.

Beside Rachel, the older agent was still sitting with his hand on Hotch's head. It was like he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. Hotch's face was pale except for the whip mark from his weapon. It was red and angry looking. His features were drawn in pain and dark circles made his eyes look twice their size. Rossi wished Aaron would open his dark eyes so he could know that he was safe. Then he started to show signs of waking and Rossi changed his mind. Hotch was in so much pain that Rossi wished he'd stayed unconscious until help arrived.

"It's coming," Hicks stated. He had faith that his people would get here as soon as they could. His shoulder mike crackled and two of his deputies reported not finding anything in the rooms they'd searched.

The third deputy was a different story. "Ah, sir, you might want to come and take a look at this."

"Where are you?" Hicks asked as he stood up. He'd been kneeling beside Matt while Jack used water from his canteen to help the young man drink.

"To the left from the room you're in. There's a little room that's kind of like a galley. There's a sink, water pump and a gas camp stove in here," the deputy responded.

"Jack, you stay here. You other two, come with me," Hicks ordered. The three men left the cell and joined the deputy in a few moments. The room was small and primitive but it worked. There was a set of wooden shelves placed into the wall above the sink and a closed door pantry along the opposite wall. The deputy was standing by the pantry, his flashlight shining on a bloody hand print.

"Have you tried to move it?" Hicks asked. Well, this was a bootlegger's cabin and tunnel. Of course he'd have a way to escape in case the federals showed up. It made a little too much sense. Hicks began kicking himself mentally. How could he be so damned stupid?

"No, sir," the deputy responded. He braced his shoulder against the edge of the pantry. One of the other deputies moved in to help and they easily moved the wooden structure out of the way. Stepping forward, Hicks shone his flashlight into the dark space behind the pantry. A string of curses spilled from his mouth. There were yet more tunnels, probably three of them and Mary had a head start. They were going to have to be extremely lucky to find the woman.

"Son of a bitch," Morgan cursed from the doorway.


	28. Chapter 28

_Ok. I'm going to run a little poll here. It's a two part question. Actually, I guess it's not. I can let the BAU capture Mary or I can plan a sequel. Which would you like? I personally am voting for the sequel. Mary is far too much fun to write!! Besides, I don't think she's finished with Hotch and Reid. Not yet!_

_I hope you enjoy the new chapter._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

"Can we search that?" Morgan asked.

"My deputies and I will head into the tunnels. You, Rossi and Dave had better stay here and protect the wounded until the medics get here. Just because it looks like Mary went in here doesn't necessarily mean she has," Hicks said. He called the other deputies to him. This was going to take a lot longer than he'd planned.

"We'll be ready if she comes back. What about the other woman?" Morgan asked. The FBI had never officially been invited on this case. The sheriff was running the whole show.

"Do what you think is best. She's in custody so we're responsible for her," Hicks stated. He didn't like the glint in Derek's eye. If the agent weren't so well trained, Rachel was likely to have an accident on the way in to the station. "Take her back to the hospital with you once the helicopters get here. She's been injured too."

OOOOO

The waiting for the helicopters and EMT's was horrible. Sitting beside Reid, Morgan felt the need to pick the smaller man up and cradle him like a baby. As he glanced around the room, he noticed that that was pretty much what Dave was doing to his brother. Morgan wasn't sure the younger brother would appreciate it once he came to. He also knew from trying to move Reid before that it would be a very bad idea. The kid was in so much pain but he wasn't entirely sure what was causing him the most discomfort. Instead, he tried to be content with running his hand through Reid's dark, sweaty hair and murmuring soft words to his young co-worker and friend.

"How long has he been bleeding?" Rossi asked Rachel. He was sitting beside Aaron. The older profiler was terrified by what he saw when he looked at his friend. Where the hell are those EMTs?

"Too long," Rachel replied. The blanket was pretty much saturated with blood but it did seem to be slowing or nearly stopped. She was afraid to pull it away to find out. Keeping her head down, she glanced around the room to check on the other men. She was so relieved that Mary couldn't touch them again.

"How are you involved in all this?" Rossi asked. The woman appeared to be too concerned for the men to have been the one to abuse them. Then how did she come to be here, trying to help them?

"Matt asked for my help up in the grandstand at the music festival when he had a severe reaction to his straw hat. He couldn't see and his girl friend got mad and left him. I had every intention of taking him to the first aid station. Then I was giving him Gravol and pushing him into the back of my camper," Rachel said. Her eyes were back on Hotch's shoulder. It at least wouldn't stare at her with hatred like the other agent. "I was so lonely. I just wanted to have someone in my life. I never intended to kidnap Matt or keep him drugged. It just sort of happened."

"Other than giving Matt Gravol, did you hurt him in any way?" Rossi asked. Aaron was struggling to come around. The moans were getting a little louder and he was shifting around as if it hurt him to be lying on his stomach. As much as Rossi wanted to roll Hotch on his side to help relieve some of the pain, stopping the blood seemed to be more important.

"No, I would never hurt him," Rachel said. For the first time she looked Rossi directly in the eye. She needed the older agent to believe her. "I would never hurt any of them. It was all Mary. I couldn't figure out how to get out of the situation without leaving Mary alone with them."

"Mary did all of this?" Rossi pressed. He wanted to make sure that Rachel was, while guilty of kidnapping was innocent of any battery charges. She had waived her rights and was willing to talk so he decided to take advantage of it.

"Yes. I've never been able to stop her once she gets something in her mind. I admit that I'm a little obsessive compulsive but I haven't deliberately hurt another person since I was in grade school," Rachel admitted. "I used to get into fights a lot with the boys in my class."

If he weren't so preoccupied with Hotch, Rossi knew that the woman's last statement should have told him something. At the moment though, he was only concerned about his friend. "Why is lying on his front so painful for him?"

"Ah," Rachel said, her cheeks turning red again and her head dropped before she could answer. "I think Mary kicked him in the crotch pretty hard."

The blood drained from Rossi's face. He knew there was probably sexual abuse but he'd been hoping desperately that there hadn't been. He reached forward, to grasp Aaron by the hip to roll him off of the damaged area when he came awake.

Gasping against the pain and not really understanding what was going on around him, Aaron tried to move away from the pressure on his shoulder. It was sucking the breath out of his lungs while the other wounds created sparks in front of his eyes. Still lying on his stomach, Hotch tried to look around. He had to know where Mary was.

"Hotch?" Rossi said. He leaned forward so that his face was in Aaron's line of sight. He could plainly see his Unit Chief scanning around him, trying to figure out what was going on. "It's Dave. You're safe now."

"Dave?" Hotch breathed. It was incredible to hear the older man's voice. For a split second it was as if this whole nightmare had never happened. Then the pain came crashing back down on him and he was struggling to breathe again.

"We need to roll him over," Rossi instructed. It wasn't going to be pleasant but Hotch was having too much trouble breathing in his current position. Nodding her head, Rachel released the blanket with one hand and helped Rossi roll Hotch up onto his side with the other.

"Where is she?" Hotch asked after taking several deep breaths. The new position didn't help his shoulder much but it made other areas of his body feel better. "Where is Mary?"

"She escaped into tunnels behind a wooden cabinet. The sheriff and his men are after her as we speak," Rossi tried to reassure Hotch. "I'm sure they have her all ready."

"How's Reid?" Hotch asked through clenched teeth. The pain was back. His shoulder especially was threatening to overwhelm his senses. It helped to distract his mind off his body by talking with Rossi. How the hell did Rossi find them? It didn't make a lot of sense.

"Morgan has him. What happened here?" Rossi tried to ignore the woman's presence. She was trying to make herself as small as possible, as if she didn't want to draw Hotch's attention to her.

"I screwed up," Hotch said simply. "I looked Mary in the eye and couldn't see how deeply disturbed she was." At the end of that speech, he closed his eyes again. It was getting harder to stay awake, especially since he knew that Reid was in Morgan's capable hands.

"I'm not sure any of us would have seen through her masks. She had the sheriff completely snowballed. He's still trying to come to grips with what she's apparently done," Rossi stated.

Rossi saw Hotch's eyes flickering closed for a few moments. Then he forced them open again and looked his friend in the face. There was fear in Hotch's brown eyes, fear and a vulnerability Rossi had never seen before. It chilled him to the bone.

"Where's Rachel?" Hotch asked. He wasn't sure where the question came from. But he knew he'd feel better about letting go of the thin filament of control his still possessed if Rachel were here. He trusted her to keep Mary at bay.

"She's putting pressure on your shoulder wound," Rossi said. He was stunned by the question.

"That's why it hurts so badly," Hotch responded. His eyes slammed shut for the final time and his breathing deepened out as he succumbed to sleep.

Over by Reid, Morgan was still stroking Spencer's hair and rambling on. He was hoping that the sound of his voice would pull the younger man out of the nightmare he seemed to be having. The young man was shifting around and mumbling under his breath. His face spread through an assortment of emotions while he seemed to be trying to knock someone away with his arms.

Afraid Reid was going to hurt himself, Morgan caught hold of the thin man's flailing arms and pressed them to the ground. This did little to ease Spencer's discomfort. He began to whimper when he realized that he couldn't move. The sound broke Morgan's heart. It was too similar to when Reid had been brutalized by Henkel. Henkel had broadcast the abuse to the other members of the BAU, forcing them to watch and listen. Morgan still had nights when the memory of those sounds kept him from sleep.

"Reid, it's Morgan. You're all right. I just don't want you to hurt yourself," Morgan said. He kept hold of Reid's arms. It seemed to be the only thing to do. "Where the hell are the EMTs?"

"Right here!" a dark haired man with the bluest eyes Morgan had ever seen as he stepped into the cell. He was followed shortly by a stouter man with dark hair and dark eyes. The two of them immediately descended on Hotch and Reid as they could see that they were in the worst shape.

Before Dave had a chance to protest the 'preferential' treatment, two more EMT's bolted through the door. One was tall, thin and had dark hair and eyes. He was of Native American descent. The other had dark blond hair and blue eyes. Assessing the situation in a moment, they split up and descended on Jared and Matt. All four men were set up with IV's before pretty much anything else was done.

"Sorry it took us so long. We had to walk in from a clearing two miles away," the first EMT apologized as he quickly replaced Rachel's blanket with a sterile compress. The woman sat back on her haunches, wiped her face with the back of her hand and watched. The Calvary was finally here. Now she would have to deal with the shambles she'd made of her life. At the moment though, it didn't matter. All four men were safe and alive. It was a better outcome than she could have hoped for. Tears pricked the corner of her eyes.

The doorway was filled by Sheriff Hicks. His deputies were gathered around behind him. One look at their faces and Morgan and Rossi knew what they were about to tell them. They'd lost Mary.


	29. Chapter 29

_Well, I guess I'm going to be doing a sequel. Yay! I'm glad readers are interested. I didn't mean to give the impression that I was done with this story because I'm not. I just needed to know if I should include them catching Mary ahead of time so I could kind of plan it out. Not that I really plan much of anything. ;)_

_Thank you all for your input! I hope you enjoy the new chapter._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

The men being naked made the paramedics' examinations that much easier but it also left them with disturbing thoughts about what had gone on in this dirt cell. Tobey, the first paramedic to enter the room, was working on Hotch. He had two IV's going, one in each arm. He'd wrapped his shoulder without taking the time to clean it. The risk of starting him bleeding again was of utmost importance. He cleaned the gash on his face and discovered that what Rossi had assumed were dark circles around Hotch's brown eyes were in fact black eyes.

Tobey secured Hotch's arm to his torso and moved down. He didn't like what he found. His professional detachment was hard to maintain. What the hell had been going on here?

"How are we doing?" Tobey called out. He knew the other three paramedics were busy assessing the other three injured. While he waited for a response, Tobey glanced up at the woman hovering beside the agent's side. The mark on her face was bad too. But at least she was clothed. He caught her brown eyes, which promptly dropped back down to the floor.

"Possible broken hip," Os, the paramedic assessing Reid, replied. "We're going to have to be careful getting him out of here. There's a bullet graze on his thigh but it's not bleeding any more. I'm sure he has other things wrong with him but the hip is the biggest concern at the moment."

"Was this man hit with something?" Roy, the paramedic working on Jared, asked. He looked up at Dave. Jared's brother wasn't letting him out of his sight ever again. He knew the man working on his brother was a professional but at the moment he didn't trust him or anyone with Jared.

"He was hit by a car," Dave said. He ran a hand through Jared's chestnut coloured hair. He found it deeply disturbing to see his brother so pale and lifeless. The only time Jared was usually still was while he slept. Even then he tended to toss and turn with dreams about the people they hunt. It absolutely killed him to think about what he was doing while that crazy bitch was kidnapping his brother. "Among other things."

"Well, that explains a lot," Roy muttered under his breath. That explained the huge bruises the man had on his side and legs. It didn't explain the damage done to his groin region but Roy wasn't sure he wanted to know the details of that one. Right now he had to make sure the man was stable enough to move out of here and up to the helicopters.

Luckily they weren't expected to haul the wounded all the way back to their landing spot. The helicopter had enough room to use the hoist mounted on the side of it to haul the wounded aloft. It wasn't Roy's favourite part of the job but it would be a whole lot faster. These men were going to need all the time they could get.

"What kind of injuries does he have?" Tobey asked. He was the lead paramedic. He needed to know what to expect on the trip back to the hospital. The small medical facility was going to be overwhelmed when they arrived but the paramedics could lend a hand as needed. The four of them were the entire compliment of the town's emergency medical team. They very rarely worked at the same time. It was a little surreal.

"There's significant bruising on his side as well as signs of dehydration. He also has a gash where he's been hit with something. There are other smaller injuries but they can wait until we get them to the hospital," Roy reported. While he talked, he was cleaning the superficial wounds and examining the extent of the bruises. Someone had had a lot of fun beating the crap out of this guy.

"What about you?" Tobey asked. He paused in his work long enough to look at Johnny and his patient.

"He has mostly superficial wounds. There're signs of dehydration but no reason to explain his continued unconscious state," Johnny replied. He kept checking the young man's eyes to see what his pupil response was. It just didn't quite add up for him.

"They've been drugged," Deputy Cullen said. He was still beside young Matt. He hated to leave the kid alone after the terrible things he'd suffered. "Rachel thinks Mary used Valium."

"Well, that helps," Johnny said.

Further conversation as pre-empted by the arrival of more bodies. They were carrying metal Stokes stretchers to help move the wounded. They were going to need all the help they could get to move the men without aggravating their injuries.

"Okay, let's get them out of here," Tobey said. He didn't want to spend any more time here than absolutely necessary.

OOOOO

Within minutes, the officers, paramedics and other emergency personnel had the four men loaded up into the stretchers and carefully secured in place. Getting them through the trap door was going to be a major accomplishment. Getting them out of the trap door without aggravating their injuries was also going to be difficult. They took their time while still moving as quickly as they could. Eventually, they got all four men above ground again.

"The two agents are going into the first helicopter. They are the most seriously wounded," Tobey instructed. He was at the head of Hotch's stretcher. The last thing the man needed was unnecessary jostling. "The other two will be lifted to the second helicopter. There is enough room for two additional people. You get to sort it out among yourselves who is coming along."

"Rachel needs to go in too," Sheriff Hicks stated. He and Jack were flanking the woman. There wasn't any fear of her trying to escape but Hicks felt the need to protect her. The looks Morgan kept sending in her direction were dark and dangerous. Some of his officers were having trouble hiding their own contempt.

"I'm fine," Rachel protested in a quiet voice. She felt the animosity directed at her and wanted to disappear off the face of the earth. This was going to be so hard on her family.

"She's not flying with Jared," Dave hissed. He didn't want the woman anywhere near his brother.

"We'll bring her in by ground. We'll head out as soon as you have everyone loaded," Hicks said. While the paramedics got the men hoisted up into the waiting helicopters, he deployed his men. There was no way he was leaving this cabin unsecured. There was still a chance that Mary was hiding in one of the tunnels they'd found down below. He'd had to call off the search because there were too many tunnels and too great a chance of his men getting lost. They were going to have to come back a good deal better prepared to do a complete search of the tunnels.

OOOOO

Rossi and Morgan were hoisted on board the helicopter after Hotch and Reid were on board and secured. There was no way they were letting their two colleagues out of their sight again. While they flew over the tree tops toward the hospital, Rossi pulled his phone out. He wanted to let J.J. and Prentiss know that they'd all been found. He felt a momentary flash of guilt that he hadn't thought to let them know earlier. Then he squashed the emotion. He had to concentrate on Hotch.

On the other bench seat, Morgan was sitting beside Reid's stretcher. He'd caught hold of the young genius's long fingered hand and was holding it tightly between his own. It was the only part of Spencer that didn't appear to have some type of injury. Fury still boiled beneath his strong exterior. The woman who had evidently done all of this had gotten away. That didn't sit well with him. He was just grateful that Rachel hadn't been put on the helicopter with them. It would have taken every ounce of self control he possessed to keep from pushing the woman out the door.

Morgan rested his elbows on his knees and leaned toward the pale young man in the metal stretcher. Spencer looked so damned young and vulnerable. Bile rose in his throat. Images of what had gone on in the cell kept playing through his mind. The possibilities were endless. He'd seen the results of unimaginable cruelty, they all had. The rage got a hotter. Unconsciously, Morgan squeezed Reid's hand just a little too hard.

When Spencer's hand squeezed back, Morgan nearly jumped out of his seat. His head came up and rested on his young colleague's wan face. His big brown eyes were open and focused on Morgan's face. He couldn't speak above the sound of the helicopter rotors and the oxygen mask over his face but his eyes spoke volumes. In those brown depths Morgan read shame, vast quantities of shame. Tears brimmed out of Spencer's eyes as he misread the expression on the older man's face.

What Spencer took to be disgust was actually compassion. Morgan had done his own examination before the paramedics had gotten them. He had a suspicion of what had been done to Reid but he didn't hold it against him. He never would. Even if the women hadn't kept them drugged, Morgan wasn't sure how well Reid would have been able to protect himself when they had Hotch to use against him and vice versa. The two agents had survived. Nothing else mattered to Derek.

Reaching down, Morgan gently brushed the tears from Spencer's face. He left his hand against the side of Reid's face when he was done, trying to infuse the younger man with some additional strength. As he watched, Spencer's face screwed up but his eyes stayed open. It was then he realized Reid was crying, sobbing like a child. Unable to look his friend and co-worker in the eye any longer, Reid closed his eyes and pressed his cheek a little harder into Morgan's hand. As dirty as he felt, he still needed to know that the older man was there. That he and Hotch were really safe and the heat from Morgan's rough hands made him feel so very safe.

OOOOO

"I still can't believe it," Sheriff Hicks grumbled. He and Deputy Cullen were escorting Rachel in to the hospital. The ride thus far had been silent. Rachel was sitting in the back seat, her head resting against the back of the seat and turned toward the window. In the rear view mirror, Hicks thought he saw tracks of tears running down her cheeks. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"I wasn't. That's the point," Rachel said. She rousted herself from her wandering thoughts. She'd been running over the events of the last week or so, trying to figure out where things went so wrong. So far she'd come up with no answers.

"Do you know where Mary might have gone?" Jack asked looking over the seat to stare at the woman. He felt sorry for her. The shame she was feeling was palpable. It didn't excuse what she'd done but it was clear to him that she was incapable of doing any of the things that had been done.

"No. Until she saw me in the department store I haven't talked to her in ten years," Rachel said. How the hell had she allowed Mary to take over her whole life again? The moment she heard Mary's voice and was looking into her dark eyes, Rachel was ten years old again. That was no excuse though. Even a ten year old knows the difference between right and wrong.

"Did she really do all that damage?" Hicks asked. Memories of Mary in her bar and the evenings he'd spent within its confines kept playing through his mind. He didn't deserve to be the Sheriff if he could be so completely snowballed.

"Yes," Rachel answered from the back, her voice small. "I tried to protect them, to help them after she'd been with them but it was never enough. It will never be enough."

The rest of the trip was made in silence. No matter how many questions the two men asked, Rachel refused to answer. Instead she stared out the side window, watching the landscape go by. She knew it would probably be her last drive through the forest for many years to come. She wanted to enjoy it without all the self loathing that kept bubbling up.

OOOOO

The helicopter landed in the parking lot of the hospital. As soon as the skids touched ground, the doctors, nurses and orderlies were racing across the asphalt. Controlled pandemonium ensued as the paramedics gave the doctors the information they needed while they quickly unloaded the two men. Rossi and Morgan sprang from the back of the helicopter and raced after them.

At the entrance to the hospital, Emily and J.J. stood waiting impatiently. Silently they watched their two friends and co-workers pushed by them but as soon as Rossi and Morgan came close they were asking questions.

"Whoa!" Morgan said, holding his hands up to ward off the women's need for information. "We'll tell you all we know but let's follow them inside first. The unsub has escaped. We need to watch over them."


	30. Chapter 30

_I forgot to mention that I stole the four paramedics from the last chapter from other shows. Os and Tobey are from "The Listener" and Roy and Johnny, of course, are from "Emergency". In this chapter I've stolen Dr. Marcus from "The Others" (Dr. Mark Gideon) and Dr. Luka is from "ER", (Dr. Luka Kovac). None of these people will be major characters but it helped to be able to imagine what they look like while writing._

_I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTY

Morgan had refused to leave Reid's side, no matter what they were intending to do to him. The doctor decided to let him stay simply because of the smouldering anger burning beneath Morgan's surface. The doctor had the feeling that the man would throttle him if he tried to bar him from the room.

Rossi had tried to be similarly threatening but had failed miserably. In his concern for his friend, he'd allowed the doctor to quickly usher him out of the room so that the man could turn his attention to dealing with Hotch. Rossi had stood outside the room, watching everything the emergency team did until they began cleaning Hotch's shoulder wound. The very sight of it made Rossi's legs go weak.

It was one thing to see pictures of that kind of damage on a dead body. It was quite another to watch doctors deal with the blood and tissue when you knew it was your friend under their ministrations. Swallowing back bile, Rossi turned his back to the proceedings in the room and braced his body against the wall. Then Emily found him and led him to the waiting area.

"Derek said that the unsub escaped. How did that happen?" Emily asked once she had Rossi seated and a cup of cold water in his hand. In all the hours she'd worked with the man she couldn't remember seeing him so distraught. It unnerved her more than she was willing to admit.

"She had them in old bootleggers' tunnels. We didn't have the time to properly survey the area before we went inside. She escaped through a series of tunnels that we knew nothing about. The local sheriff is bringing in the other unsub and setting up a search," Rossi said. He paused long enough to drain the cup and putting it down on the floor by his feet.

"The unsub is female?" Prentiss said. It was the one part of the older man's speech that had struck her as odd. It was very rare that they had had to deal with a female unsub. Much less an unsub that would kidnap two male Federal agents.

"Yes. She ran the bar you met us at," Rossi said. He hated to admit that he too had faced the woman and not seen how deeply deranged she really was. He knew that Hotch was also going to spend far too much time berating himself for exactly the same thing. They were all trained in dealing with the criminal mind. How could all of them have been so blind?

"How are they?" J.J. asked from her position two seats down. She knew trying to track down the unsub was very important but her primary concern at the moment was Hotch and Reid. It didn't sit well at all that she wasn't able to go see them, to make sure that they were really there and safe.

"Bad," was the only thing Rossi could think to say in response.

OOOOO

The wait in the family room was interminable. It felt as if time had stopped while they waited to find out what the doctors had to say. The hall outside the waiting room was silent. They didn't even have the distraction of the occasional person walking by.

The door to the emergency area was just outside the door and to the left but even it was abandoned. Glancing at the glass doors, Rossi momentarily considered running through them. That wouldn't help anyone but it would be a good sight better than sitting here like a bump on a log while two of his best friends were being worked on by doctors.

Then the glass doors slid apart. Sheriff Hicks, Deputy Cullen and Rachel stepped inside. The two officers were flanking the woman as if they expected her to make a break for it at any moment. After talking to her, Rossi knew that wasn't a possibility. She was more than willing to take responsibility for what she'd caused to happen. The haunted expression on her round face indicated to him that she was still overwhelmed with shame.

Hicks made his way to the reception desk a short distance down the hall to see what was going on with the victims. He also wanted to register Rachel as well so she could get looked at once the doctors had time. The woman had protested that she was fine as soon as they got back into town. Hicks wanted to get her checked anyway.

"You should sit down," Jack suggested. He'd been left to watch over Rachel. The woman was standing still at the side of the hallway, staring ahead of her. Jack had the impression that she really couldn't see what was in front of her, that she was zoned out.

Not responding, Rachel pressed her back against the wall and slid down it. Her butt on the floor, Rachel pulled her knees up and propped her elbows on them. Her hands on her opposite shoulders, Rachel rested her head where they crossed. It was easier to block out the world that way. She didn't even really notice the handcuff chain that pressed lightly against her throat.

"Is that one of the unsubs?" J.J. asked. She'd watched the whole scene unfold. The woman sitting on the floor looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.

"Yes, that's Rachel Carson. She confessed to kidnapping Matt dePape at the country music festival. She claims the other woman, Mary, was the aggressor and abused the men. That Mary was the one that kidnapped Reid, Hotch and Jared," Rossi said. "I believe her."

Before they could pursue that line of thought, the agents heard the sound of footsteps coming down the hall way. Then two doctors, dressed in green scrubs, walked into the waiting room.

"Are you here for Spencer Reid and Aaron Hotchner?" the older of the two men asked. He was in his early forties and had black hair and light blue eyes. The other doctor was in his early thirties and had blond hair and blue eyes. Both men were very serious which made the three agents that much more apprehensive.

"Yes," Rossi said as he gained his feet to meet the men half way. "How are they doing?"

"Aaron Hotchner has multiple contusions and bruises consistent with being beaten with fists and feet. Whoever did the beating wasn't particularly strong so they are shallow and will heal relatively quickly. The gash on his face required stitches but it should heal without leaving a scar.

"He was shot in the right shoulder. The entrance wound was easy to take care of but the exit wound had to be cleaned and debrided. Luckily the bullet glanced off the scapula without causing any damage but left quite a hole on its way out. It will take some time and possibly some physical therapy for him to regain full usage of his arm.

"We also found significant damage to his genitalia. What strength the person didn't use while beating Agent Hotchner made up for it when they kicked him in the crotch. We have him on antibiotics, anti inflammatories and pain killers. He appears to be as comfortable as we can get him for now," The older doctor informed them.

"What about Spencer?" Emily asked. She was having trouble digesting everything the doctor had said. It was unbelievable to her that Hotch had allowed anyone to do that to him. He was a trained FBI agent. He should have been able to protect himself and Reid. That was his job. A job he took very seriously.

"Agent Reid also has multiple contusions and bruises of a minor nature. Many of them have all ready p and started to heal. He has deeper bruising from being hit by the car. While the bruises are deep and painful the x-rays we've taken indicate that no bones have been broken.

"Agent Reid was shot along the length of his right leg. The surface damage to the skin was deep enough in places to require stitches but otherwise was minor in nature. Where the bullet struck his hip bone, however, caused a hairline fracture in the bone. We need to do more specialized x-rays, including an MRI, to determine if we need to do surgery to shore up the bone. At the moment though, it appears it should heal well on its own. For now we'd like to see him on a pair of crutches to keep from putting undue stress on the bone while it heals.

"Lastly, we found that Agent Reid has been raped with some form of soft, cylindrical object. Dr. Marcus suggested that it might have been some form of latex phallic sex toy. We have him on pain killers, anti inflammatories and antibiotics. The physical damage from the rape was minimal. We will have to wait until he wakes up from the medications we have him on to see what the psychological damage is," the older doctor said. He'd talked about the rape with the same professional distance as he had Reid's other injuries. His complete lack of sensitivity took Prentiss and J.J.'s breath away. Someone had used a sex toy to abuse their youngest member. That made every ones' blood boil.

"Have you taken samples from both of them to aid in prosecuting the unsubs?" Rossi asked. It was easier to think in terms of this being a typical case. If he thought about how truly awful that had been for Reid, it would prevent him from functioning. He knew that they were going to have to step aside for someone else to do the investigation on this one. All of them were too close.

"We followed all procedures, I can assure you," Dr. Marcus said. He'd watched the blood drain out of the three agents' faces. Obviously this was a very close unit that felt each other's pain. That was a good thing for the two men in the recovery room. They were going to need all the sympathy and empathy they could get to get through this.

"What about the other two men?" J.J. asked. They really weren't that much of a priority at the moment but she knew that at some point she might have to inform family members of their conditions.

"You are not family members so we really shouldn't tell you anything about their conditions," the older doctor stated.

"What we can tell you is that they have both been drugged. We've sent blood samples from all four men to the lab to see what kind of things they were on. Until we know that we will be unable to counteract what they were given. The younger man has a twisted knee, whip marks and other contusions and bruises. None of them are life threatening or permanent.

"The older man has significant trauma to his left side resulting, we assume, from being struck with a vehicle. Again, none of the damage will be permanent or cause permanent disfigurement. The gash to his face required a few stitches but should heal fine as well," Dr. Marcus said. He refused to look at his superior. They'd all ready had this discussion in private. He hadn't agreed with keeping the agents out of the loop. They deserved to know as much as they could possibly tell them. Mentally he'd cringed when he heard the tone of voice Dr. Luka had used when discussing the rape of the younger agent. Sometimes the man had the empathy of a rock.

"When can we go see Hotch and Reid?" Emily asked. She kept glancing at the woman sitting in the hallway. For the first time in her life she had the overwhelming urge to throttle the woman. She needed to keep her mind on her colleagues.

"Your Agent Morgan has stayed with Agent Reid while we worked on him. We're moving Agents' Reid and Hotchner to a hospital room where they can be allowed to rest. You may visit them for short periods in twos. Don't be too disappointed if they don't respond to you though, they're both on pretty strong medications," Dr. Marcus said as he turned to leave the room and lead the three agents toward the observation room.

OOOOO

The doctor was right. Both men were too heavily medicated to react to their friends' presence. Hotch was curled up on his left side, pillows keeping him from rolling onto his front or his back. He looked very childlike with his head curled into his chest, his eyes closed in sleep and his mouth slightly open. The sight tugged at Rossi's heart. This may be the last good night sleep Hotch got for a good long time.

Knowing the Unit Chief as he did, Rossi fully expected Hotch to blame himself for all of this. He knew he would blame himself for not being able to protect Reid. It was the guilt that the man always carried around just beneath the surface of his mind. If anything happened to any of them during the course of an investigation Hotch automatically blamed himself for some unseen fault in his logic or his ability to predict future events.

Rossi heaved a deep sigh as he moved up beside Hotch's bed. The nurses had taken the time to clean him up so he looked almost as pale as the white sheets they had him lying on and the one pulled up to his shoulder. Unconsciously, he placed his hand on the side of Hotch's head, to reassure himself that he was there and that he was all right. It was also a way of letting Hotch know in a real way that he was there and that Hotch was safe. He had the feeling that Hotch wasn't going to feel safe for some time to come.

Morgan watched the other three agents file into the room. He was sitting on a vinyl chair beside Reid's bed. He still had a death grip on the younger man's thin hand. The nurses and doctors had tried to get him to let go but they'd been unsuccessful. He'd been grateful that he'd stood his ground while they were tending to Reid's back end. The kid's fingers had clenched around his convulsively during the whole procedure.

Now Reid was also lying on his left side. Pillows were wedged against his body to keep him in that position until some of the trauma faded from his hip and back end. Even now Reid's fingers kept clenching and unclenching in response to the spasms of pain flowing through his body.

"How is he?" J.J. asked as she knelt in front of Morgan, taking his other hand between her two small ones. She knew from the haunted look in Morgan's brown eyes that things had been bad in the emergency room. The older agent looked haggard, like he'd aged ten years.

"You know what she did to him?" was Morgan's response. Tears sprang to his eyes when he looked up at J.J.'s open, beautiful face and saw the terror behind her blue eyes. A terror he was sure was mirrored in his own eyes. Having his suspicions confirmed had nearly broken him. The only thing that gave him strength was knowing that Reid was going to need him to be strong to get through this.

"Yes, the doctor told us," J.J. said, tears in her eyes. Looking down at Reid's face while he slept in the swath of pillows, she couldn't resist running her hand through Reid's curly, brown hair. She smoothed his hair out of his closed eyes and tucked it behind his ear, the way Reid usually did when he was uncomfortable.

"Have they found Mary?" Morgan asked quietly. He wasn't sure if Reid could hear him but he didn't want to take the chance. The knowledge that the woman who had done this to him was still running around loose would deeply disturb the younger man.

"No, not yet," J.J. answered. She glanced over at Emily. The other woman was standing beside Rossi, her hand on the older man's shoulder. She felt helpless and she hated it. A very young part of her wanted things to go back to the way they were. She didn't want to have to deal with the new hurtles that had been thrown into the two men's lives. Then she squared her shoulders. She was going to do whatever she needed to do to make sure all of them came through this. In one piece.


	31. Chapter 31

_Hello! Thank you very much for all the lovely reviews, they really made my day! Also, you did remind me about Garcia. Don't worry, I hadn't forgotten completely, I had intended to bring her in in this chapter then my attention wandered. Unfortunately I have the attention span of a gnat. But you brought me back and Garcia appears! I just hope I write her personality properly. Oh, well, I tried._

_I also would like to thank eEagle for bringing up Rachel. I don't do romance. My brother tells me I'm old and bitter but it doesn't have much of a place in my stories. But then, I don't think I'm quite done with her yet either so there will be one or two times that she is needed. You'll have to wait to find out how!_

_I haven't started writing the sequel yet because I'm not quite done with this story. I will though, don't worry. By saying that though, I've all ready let you know that Mary will escape. What fun would a sequel be without her?_

_I hope you enjoy this chapter. Not so much action is involved but I think it needs to be included._

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTY ONE

Now that the doctors were finished with the initial wounded, Dr. Marcus went down the hallway and helped Rachel to her feet. The woman barely looked at him as he led her toward one of the smaller examination rooms.

Dr. Marcus asked her to get up on the examination table so he could take a closer look at the woman's face. Whoever did all of this had had a little too much fun using the wrong end of the gun. He was thankful that Mary hadn't used the business end of the gun but there was still a lot of damage there.

"So, when is someone going to tell me what the hell has been going on here?" Dr. Marcus asked. He'd donned a pair of sterile gloves and began trying to clean the gash on the woman's face. There was such sorrow and self loathing in her dark brown eyes that he chose to not look into their depths.

"It's a long story," Rachel said, her voice quiet and exhausted.

"We appear to have plenty of time, at least until I finish cleaning this for you," Dr. Marcus stated. He was a small town doctor, being a shrink came along with the other duties he had to perform. If the patient's issues were too complicated, he referred them to one of the professionals in the bigger cities.

Rachel glanced at the young doctor before allowing her eyes to skid sideways again. Her shame was so overwhelming that she found she couldn't look anyone in the eye. She felt like the scum of the earth. Even being around people was becoming extremely uncomfortable.

"How are they?" Rachel asked, tears shimmering in the corners of her eyes. She didn't feel she had the right to ask but she was desperate to know. She knew Jared and Matt weren't hurt badly enough to risk their lives but she wasn't so sure about the two agents.

"They will all need some time to heal but nothing has been done that is permanent in nature. The psychological scars may take longer to heal but that depends on them," Dr. Marcus answered. He'd finished cleaning and putting butterfly band aids on the woman's face. "I'm going to shine a light in your eyes. I want to rule out a concussion, you were hit pretty hard."

"I'm fine," Rachel said. She tried not to flinch when Dr. Marcus panned his penlight across her eyes but she was unsuccessful. Damn that thing was bright.

"No, I'd say you're not 'fine'. You have signs of concussion. I'm going to want to keep you here overnight for observation," Dr. Marcus stated. He really was concerned for the woman. She'd been hit very hard, her eyes were a little sluggish and she was showing sensitivity to light.

"Don't they only do that on TV?" Rachel said. Her head hurt like hell but she figured she deserved it. "Shouldn't you be checking in on them?"

"No, we don't just do this on TV. Why are you so concerned about the men? I thought you were one of the people that hurt them," Dr. Marcus asked. He'd sat back so that he had a better view of the woman. She still wasn't looking at him. Her eyes were centered on a spot between his feet. It was very disconcerting to talk to the top of a person's head.

His last statement got a rise though, Rachel's head came up for the first time she looked him directly in the eyes. There was anger burning in the depths of her brown eyes. "I didn't hurt any of them. I'd never do what was done to them," Rachel growled.

There was a knock on the door and Sheriff Hicks stuck his head into the room. "Is she ready to go, Doctor?" he asked. He needed to get back out with his men to continue the search. He'd all ready called in the State Troopers and the National Guard. He needed as much help as they could give him. There was far too much area to cover.

"She needs to spend the night under observation. She'll be good to go in the morning if no more symptoms appear," Dr. Marcus said.

"I'm fine," Rachel grumbled. At the moment a nice quiet cell all alone sounded like a wonderful idea.

"Okay. Do you have a room to keep her in? Your other two are a little busy at the moment," Hicks said. He glanced at Rachel before turning his attention back to the doctor. The medical team in town had their hands full that was sure. Even the four paramedics were doing double duty. They were in charge of the two less badly wounded.

"Don't worry, Deputy Cullen and I will keep a close eye on her. She won't get away," Marcus assured him.

OOOOO

The air outside the hospital smelled wonderful. Hicks really hated the place and all the disinfectant and other scents that went with it. Standing on the stone steps, Sheriff Hicks was enjoying the sensations of the great outdoors when a very large, boat sized convertible pulled up in front of him. If he wasn't so damned tired he'd be able to remember what type it was but the very blond woman with the outlandish clothes held his entire attention.

"Where are they?" she demanded. "Where are Hotch and Spencer?"

"Who are you?" Hicks asked. While the woman certainly wasn't Mary he still didn't trust her to go near the agents until he knew who she was.

"Penelope Garcia. I'm a member of the BAU. Now, where the hell are they?" Garcia demanded. She knew the man had a gun but she didn't care. She just wanted to know where her friends were.

"Its okay, Sheriff," Rossi said as he stepped outside the doors. He'd needed a breath of fresh air as well. It was killing him watching Hotch and Reid sleep. Even with all the painkillers the two of them were being pumped with they were obviously still in a great deal of pain. Rossi hated watching it pass over their faces. "She's with us."

"How are they?" Garcia demanded as she joined Rossi on the top step before the doors. Rossi was forced to grab the young computer specialist by the arms to keep her from running by him. He was used to the woman being a little emotional but he'd never seen this degree before.

"I'll explain along the way, just take a couple of breaths first. You aren't going to do either of them any good if you hyperventilate," Rossi instructed. When he was convinced the woman was calmer, he let go of one of her arms and led her into the hospital. As they paced through the hall, he explained everything that they knew so far.

By the time they reached the door to the two agents' room, Penelope was much calmer but also extremely pale. She couldn't believe what she'd just been told. None of that could have happened to Hotch and Reid. It was all just so wrong.

As they stepped inside the room, Morgan was standing beside Reid's bed. From his stance and facial expression, Rossi knew the man was ready to defend his two friends with his life. Seeing Garcia with Rossi, he visibly relaxed and a sad smile spread across his lips.

"Have they woken up yet?" Garcia asked as she moved first to Reid and then Hotch. She didn't know which one to stay beside. She wanted to be with both of them. Finally she settled between the two beds, her right hand gently resting against the back of Reid's head and her other one rested on Aaron's hand on top of the covers.

"No, not yet," Morgan answered. Somehow having Garcia here made him feel so much better. It also made him realize just how terribly tired he really was. His head down, Morgan rubbed the back of his neck. Glancing up at Rossi, he could see similar exhaustion in his brown eyes.

"Go, get some sleep, I'll stay here," Penelope said. She'd seen the policeman outside their door and the two down the hall. The place was very small. The three officers could search everyone that came into the place. Besides, she had a gun tucked away in her purse. She'd never told any of the agents but she'd gotten it after being shot on her front step. Until now she'd had no real reason to carry it.

"You've seen the pictures of the unsub that got away?" Morgan asked. He knew about the officers, he also knew that Prentiss and J.J. were able to sleep last night. He and Rossi were going to be useless in a few more hours if they didn't get some shut eye themselves.

"That woman's face is burned into my memory. She's not getting in here. Where's the other one?" Penelope asked. She knew what both women looked like. She wanted to be prepared to defend the men against either one of them.

"In the room, three doors down the hall. The other two men are in the next room," Rossi told her. He too was suddenly feeling the effects of lack of sleep. He felt like he was the walking dead.

"Okay. Go. Sleep. I'll call you if anything changes," Garcia said. She hadn't moved either of her hands except to stroke Reid's hair and Aaron's hand, to let them know that she was here.

"Emily and J.J. are in the next room. All you have to do is yell and they'll be here," Rossi said. Then the two men left, headed for the hotel. As much as they wanted to be with Reid and Hotch or be out searching for Mary, they needed to sleep, if only for a little while.

OOOOO

The rest of the day passed quietly in the agents' room. The nurses came in, checked IV's, took vital signs and checked on them while Garcia hovered. She watched everything they did like a hawk. J.J. and Emily came in as well. They were glad to see the last member of their team but there was a hardened edge about her that gave them both pause.

"I guess her maternal instincts have kicked in," Emily stated. She understood the other woman's reaction to seeing both of their friends injured. But in Garcia, the hard edge was actually kind of frightening. Emily and J.J. were headed to the staff room to get a cup of coffee. Garcia had refused to leave the men.

"I always knew she'd make a good mother," J.J. responded, a smile on her face. She wouldn't want to get between Garcia and Hotch and Reid. She had the feeling Penelope would hurt her or anyone else that tried.

In the room, Garcia was humming quietly to herself while her hands continued to move, trying to impart peace and strength to Hotch and Reid. For the most part it seemed to be working because the two men were still sleeping deeply. Then Penelope felt Hotch's hand shift under hers.

"Hotch?" Garcia asked as she stepped a little closer to the dark haired man. She knew that meant breaking contact with Reid but Hotch was showing definite signs of waking. His handsome face grimaced as the pain registered. His breathing became a little shallower and sweat broke out on his face. Under Hotch's closed eyelids, Garcia could see his eyes shifting back and forth. Whatever Aaron was seeing was causing his heart rate to accelerate.

"Hotch," Garcia said a little more forcefully. Hotch's brown eyes snapped open. They searched around, as if expecting someone other than her to be standing there. Not finding whoever he was looking for, Hotch brought his eyes around to rest on Penelope's concerned face.

"Spencer?" Hotch croaked out. He was somewhat surprised to see Penelope hovering over him. Rossi or Morgan would have been his first bets.

"On the next bed. He's sleeping still," Penelope said. She moved out of the way so Aaron could see Reid's back on the bed beside his.

"Mary?" Hotch asked. It felt like every ounce of water had been drained from his body. That was probably a response to the amount of blood he'd lost. It frustrated the hell out of him because it made speaking difficult. He'd felt the IV's in his arms and knew that meant the doctor wouldn't allow him to drink anything. That just frustrated him more.

"They're still looking for her," Garcia said. She hated to admit that to her boss. She'd spent hours poring over satellite photos from the area around the cabin during the time period the sheriff said Mary had disappeared and come up empty. "Sheriff Hicks has called in more help."

Garcia didn't want to admit to Hotch that she'd hacked the sheriff's computer base to find out the information. It was how she'd found out where Hotch and Reid had been taken. Rossi had forgotten to tell her during the five second phone call they'd had on board the helicopter.

Hotch's eyes were trying to slam shut again. The short conversation had drained what little strength he'd managed to gather. His body was trying to pull him back into the gentle folds of unconsciousness. He fought against it. He needed to know one more thing.

"Rachel?" Aaron asked. In the short time he'd been awake he realized he missed the woman's presence. Just knowing she was around made him feel safe in a way that he wasn't sure he ever would again.

Shock flashed over Penelope's face for a moment before she got control of it. That would be the last person she'd expect Hotch to ask about. But then, maybe he just wanted to know that she was in custody.

"She's a couple of rooms down the hall. The doctor wants to keep her here overnight for observation. Don't worry, there's a police officer in her room so she won't escape or come in here," Penelope tried to reassure him.

While he was grateful that a doctor had seen Rachel, Hotch wasn't sure that down the hall was close enough. How could he explain that to Penelope when his current conversational skills were reduced to a single word? His mind still working on the problem, unconsciousness snuck up on Aaron and pounced.

Seeing Hotch's eyes slide closed, Garcia pulled his white sheet up a little more over his body. Satisfied, she resumed her position between the two men. She was prepared to stay like this all night if necessary. No one was touching her friends ever again.


	32. Chapter 32

_Sorry about that little slip up. I guess I occasionally confuse Gideon and Rossi even though they are completely different characters. Thank you to Paineverlasting for pointing out my mistake. I've fixed it so if you don't know what I'm talking about then I fixed it in time!_

_Thank you as always for the wonderful reviews. They absolutely make my day! I check my email obsessively to see if there's a new review. Yes, I'm a very sad person. What can I say?_

_I should have done this before but I didn't think to. WARNING: In this chapter there is reference to former sexual abuse. It's not too graphic but it's there. Just so you know._

_Enjoy chapter 32!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

Trying to take care of Jared and Matt while Dave was in the room would have strained the patience of a saint. While Roy DeSoto was pretty damned close to a saint, his hot headed partner, Johnny Gage definitely wasn't. More than once the younger paramedic was ready to throttle the man.

"Would you please sit down," Johnny growled. He was trying to check Jared over for the second time since the young man had been examined, cleaned up and put in the hospital room beside Matt. Dave was hovering. It was what he seemed to do best at the moment. It was driving Johnny nuts.

"I just want to make sure Jared's all right," Dave growled back. They were going to have to drug him and drag him away to get to his brother without him watching. No one was going to touch Jared again without him being there to make sure it wasn't an inappropriate touch. Unless, of course, Jared wanted that kind of touch. In which case, Dave planned on being on the other side of the door if not farther away.

"He's fine. The wounds are all minor and will heal in time. The doctors want to keep a close eye on him and Matt while they come out of the drugs Mary gave them," Roy tried to reassure the over protective brother. He thought he could understand where the man was coming from. If Johnny had been kidnapped and abused like these four men had been, there would be no way he'd leave his partner alone.

"What the hell did that bitch give them?" Dave wanted to know. He knew the paramedics were doing their jobs but all he wanted to do was to get Jared out of this hick town and back on the road. The brothers were much harder targets to find when they were on the move. From now on they were going to use cash only. It would make them that much harder to track. So long as that crazy woman was loose, Dave wasn't taking any chances.

"Higher than recommended dosages of Valium," Tobey answered from his position beside Matt. He'd been monitoring Matt's vital signs. The hospital was too small. It didn't have enough heart monitors to put all of them on one. He knew the two agents in the other room needed them more because of the extent of their injuries but it still kept him and the other paramedics busy.

"What is the long term effect of that?" Dave asked. He glanced down at his sleeping brother. Jared looked so damned young when he slept. It broke his heart to know that he regularly put his brother's life in danger while they hunted fugitives. Dave had been watching over his brother since the kid was six months old. Their mother died from cancer and their dad kind of disappeared after that. Their dad would travel the country, hunting fugitives just like they do, leaving his young sons in a hotel room while he stalked his prey. Sometimes Dave was left with Jared for days at a time. It was just the way it was.

"There shouldn't be any but we'll keep an eye on them for a day or two after they wake up just to make sure," Roy answered.

"I'm gonna kill that bitch," Dave grumbled under his breath. Finally giving in to exhaustion, Dave turned to the nearest chair and slumped into it. Damn he was tired.

"How's Matt doing?" Roy asked. The kid was showing signs of coming around but then he'd be pulled back under by the drugs. They were having an awful time trying to flush them out of the men's systems.

"He's stable. He just needs a little longer for the drugs to work their way through his body," Tobey answered. "I think both of them will be sleeping until morning."

"I think you're right. I'm going to go check on the other two," Roy said. The doctors were keeping a pretty close eye on the agents but he felt the need to stretch his legs and get out of the claustrophobic hospital room.

"I'll yell if anything comes up," Johnny assured his partner. Then he went back to monitoring Jared. Out of the corner of his eye, the paramedic saw Dave finally succumb to sleep. Peace at last.

OOOOO

Rachel barely reacted when the door to her room opened. Without any interest, Rachel watched as Dr. Marcus moved into her line of sight. She was handcuffed to the guard rail on her bed making sleeping near to impossible. Lying on her side, trying to keep her face from touching the pillow just wasn't especially comfortable for her.

"Dr. Luka and I are heading home for the night. The search teams haven't found Mary yet and everyone is stable at this point. We figure we might as well get some sleep too. The paramedics will stay and monitor all of the injured while we're gone. Is there anything you need?" Dr. Marcus asked. He felt terrible leaving the woman here in her misery. The desire to sleep, however, was slowing his mind and reflexes. The paramedics would let them know if anything came up.

"No. I'm fine," Rachel lied. The shame continued to burn through her soul. She just wanted all of this to be over all ready.

"Deputy Cullen is outside your door if you need anything. He didn't want anyone else watching over you," Dr. Marcus said, hoping to make her feel better.

"I'm fine. Have a good sleep," Rachel stated somewhat dismissively. She wanted to be alone.

"Okay, well, I'll check on you in the morning," Dr. Marcus said. Feeling a little defeated, he turned and left the room.

OOOOO

"Where am I?"

The words were spoken in such a soft voice that Penelope thought for a split second that she'd imagined it. She wanted to badly to hear Reid's voice and yet when she heard it she barely recognized it.

"Hi sweety," Penelope said as she moved over to Reid's side. Those beautiful brown eyes were open and staring straight ahead. Upon seeing Garcia move in his peripheral vision, Reid scanned toward her almost afraid of who he'd see. "How are you feeling?"

"Garcia?" Reid said. His voice was barely above a whisper. He wasn't sure if Mary was around and he didn't want to draw her attention to him. But he couldn't quite figure out where Penelope had come from. Was he hallucinating?

"Hi. I came as soon as I heard you guys were safe. How are you?" Garcia hated the fact that she had to repeat herself. That wasn't like Reid at all.

"Where am I?" Reid asked in an effort to avoid answering the woman's question. At the moment the only thing he was sure of was that he hurt, all over. But what hurt the most was knowing what had been done to him. The pain was bad enough. The thought that Hotch had seen Mary rape him with her toy was smothering him with the enormity of it. What would his boss, his mentor think of him now? How could he ever trust Reid to go back out in the field if a woman had over powered him and done the ultimate act of dominance on him? What kind of a man was he? A single tear tracked down the side of Reid's face and was absorbed into the pillow beneath his head.

"You're in a hospital room with Hotch. He's behind you on the other bed," Penelope said as she settled down in the chair beside Reid's bed. There were tormented, terrifying emotions swirling around in Spencer's dark eyes. They were so turbulent and varied that she couldn't pin them down before another emotion rose to the surface.

"How bad?" Reid asked. What little voice he had was beginning to leave him. That was just as well. He didn't feel much like continuing this conversation except he did want to know how Hotch was doing. When he closed his eyes he could hear the older man screaming in agony. The sound chilled him to the bone.

"He's been shot and beaten but he'll be all right. It'll just take a little time," Penelope said. She put her left hand on top of Reid's hands and her right hand absently ran through Spencer's long hair.

"Good," Reid said. He desperately wanted to pull away from Garcia. He didn't want her to touch him, for anyone to touch him. Instinctively he knew though, that the computer tech would take it personally and he couldn't face hurting her feelings. There had all ready been too much hurt in their lives lately, he didn't want to cause any more.

Unsure of what else to say, Reid allowed his eyes to close in what he hoped was a sign that he was falling asleep. In reality he really wanted to not talk any more. There was a sympathy and horror in Garcia's eyes that told him volumes. If she knew, everyone knew. The sense of suffocating returned.

"Are you okay, Spence?" Garcia pressed. She hadn't been fooled. Penelope noticed that the young genius had not answered her question. She wasn't going to let him get off that easily.

" 'm fine," Spencer mumbled, still trying to feign falling asleep. As he did he concentrated on his breathing, allowing it to even out and deepen. Before he was aware of it, he had in fact fallen into a deep, troubled sleep.

Sighing, Penelope ran her hand through Reid's hair one more time before moving over to check on Hotch. The Unit Chief appeared to be sleeping as well. So, Garcia settled back down into the chair and pulled out her laptop. There were still lots of satellite images to go through. The need to make sure that witch Mary was captured burned through her.

OOOOO

_Reid was trapped on his stomach, no matter how hard he tried he couldn't roll over onto his back. The need to get off his stomach made Reid's mind and actions frantic. There was a weight across the back of his legs, pinning him further. The weight shifted as if the person was leaning forward._

_Warm, rough hands ran down Reid's side from his arm pits to his hips. The sensation sent shivers down his spine. Still desperately trying to get away, Reid couldn't even move his finger. It must be very similar to what people with ALS experienced. His mind could feel, smell and hear everything while he was completely unable to do anything to help himself._

_The hands came up over his hips to his buttocks. Something cold was pressed against him. It hurt but not too badly, not yet. The pressure was increased as did the pain. It ripped through him, coming from deep inside him. It was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. A groan escaped his frozen lips. That was followed closely by another as the pressure continued to grow. Then the coldness was being pulled out of his body and thrust back into it. It was happening all over again and he was still helpless to stop it._

A strangled scream erupted from Reid. Startled, Penelope barely managed to keep from tossing her laptop to the floor. Then she set the computer aside and went to her young associate. Reid as thrashing around a bit, sweat was gathered on his brow while his skin was cold and clammy. His thin face was full of pain and fear and yet his eyes stayed closed.

"Sweety, sweety, wake up," Penelope said. Reaching around him, she gently rubbed Reid's back, trying to sooth him while trying to wake him at the same time.

Still in the throes of his nightmare, Reid pulled away from her touch. The young genius tried to back away from her, to get into a more defensible position. It was instinctual in nature, the need to know that his back was safe.

"Reid, wake up," Penelope said louder. The thin young man's actions were completely freaking her out. He kept trying to throw himself off the back of the bed. Every time she touched him he would jerk away as if she burned him with the contact.

Garcia's raised voice brought Hotch out of his own drug induced sleep. Blinking, it took Hotch a few seconds to realize what was going on. It took him a few more to realize there wasn't anything he could do to help the situation.

The door opened and a man Garcia didn't recognize rushed in. She recognized the paramedic uniform but that did little to assure her. The blond man stepped in, after gently moving Penelope out of the way. He caught hold of Reid's flailing arms and pressed them against the mattress with one hand. With his other hand he braced Reid's body against his own. Roy knew the kid had a cracked hip, the last thing he needed was to make it worse.

"It's okay, it's okay," Roy said as he waited for the young man to calm. Only he never did. Glancing over Reid's shoulder, Roy saw that the older agent, Hotchner, was watching him.

"Where's Rachel?" Hotch asked, his voice barely above Reid's vocalizing while he continued to thrash against the paramedic's attempt to restrain him.

"Down the hall," Roy answered. The kid was thin but wiry. He was having trouble keeping hold of him.

"She can help," Aaron said as he watched his subordinate and felt too damned helpless.

"What are you talking about, sir?" Garcia said. It didn't make sense to her. "She's one of the unsubs."

"She took care of us. She spoke to us while she tended our wounds. Reid may respond to her voice when he won't respond to ours," Aaron said. The entire speech wore him out and left him thirsty. But he was sure he was right.

"Are you sure, sir?" Garcia asked. She didn't want to be in the same room as either of the unsubs but she couldn't stand to watch Reid in so much distress. She was almost willing to try anything at this point.

"Yes," Aaron said with the last of his voice and energy. He just wished they'd hurry. The chances of Reid injuring himself further increased exponentially with each passing minute.


	33. Chapter 33

_Thank you once again for the reviews! It really makes my day and makes writing come that much faster. I know that there are probably some medical inaccuracies in my story but they're there because it makes for a better story. At least, I think so. All things make sense in my own mind!! _

_Enjoy!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTY THREE

Swallowing her misgivings, Garcia left Roy in charge of a still frantic Reid. Moving as fast as she could, she made her way down the hallway to where the police officer was standing in front of Rachel's room.

"Um," Penelope said. Now that she was here she wasn't quite sure what to say. The sounds of Reid's struggling could be heard as a muffled sound. It made her want to move faster.

"What can I do for you?" Deputy Cullen asked. He tried to not stare too hard at the woman. She was one of the oddest people he'd seen in recent history. It didn't take a genius though to see that she was upset about something.

"Hotch thinks Reid needs to hear Rachel's voice," Garcia said in a rush. It didn't sound quite so stupid when she said it quickly. What the hell was she doing here anyway?

"I can't let her out of her room," Jack stated. He could hear the sounds from down the hallway getting a little louder. Clearly something was up. He glanced in that direction as the two female agents rushed toward the far room.

"He's having a nightmare or something, I can't calm him down," Garcia pressed. She looked down the hallway as well when Emily and J.J. tried to deal with the frantic young genius. If anything, the sounds of disturbance were getting a little louder. "Please. Hotch thinks she can help."

Sighing, Jack gently knocked on the door before opening it a few inches. He slipped his head inside and was unsurprised to see that Rachel was watching him. Stepping inside, he faced the woman. The lights were turned down low but he felt her eyes following him. "There's a problem with Agent Reid," Jack said in way of explanation. Leaning across her, he quickly undid the handcuff. Hicks was going to kill him if this didn't work out.

Upon hearing the young man's name, Rachel sat up. "What's wrong?" she asked as she slid off the bed. It was refreshing to have someone else to worry about for a few moments. She'd spent the last several hours trying to figure out how to explain all of this to her family. She was no closer to an answer.

"I'm not sure but they can't calm him down. Agent Hotchner seems to think you might be able to help," Jack said as he gently grasped her arm and began leading her out of the room. He didn't expect her to try to run away but she was still in custody and he had to act appropriately.

By the time they reached the end of the hall, Emily and J.J. had tried and failed to calm Reid. He'd rolled onto his back, increasing his discomfort and fear. Now not only was his hip pulsing pain through his body but his back end wasn't real happy with the new position either. While examining him the doctor had actually caused more discomfort than had been there originally. All he knew was that it hurt in a place that it never should.

Stepping into the room, Rachel immediately felt the need to disappear into a black hole. There were too many people crowded into the small room. There was so much fear and concern in the confined space it as almost palpable. If it hadn't been for Reid and how terribly distraught he was, she would have fled back to the peace and quiet of her cell.

Beyond Reid, Rachel saw Hotch in the next bed. He was silently watching her with those dark, intense eyes of his. She wasn't sure if that made her feel better or worse. To be so close to the pain and suffering she'd helped cause was stifling. Blocking it all out, Rachel moved to Reid's bedside. From the multitude of pillows she guessed that the doctors had wanted him on his side.

"Sssh," Rachel said as she gently but firmly forced Reid back up onto his side. She was careful of his hip. The last thing she wanted to do was to cause more pain. "You're all right. You're all right. It's just a dream."

From his position on the other bed, Hotch watched while Rachel tried to bring Reid out of his dreams. The woman's actions were awkward and seemed almost unnatural to her. That surprised him after how she'd tended them back in the tunnels. But then, she hadn't had an audience then, a menacing female audience. He almost felt sorry for her. He would have if she hadn't doggedly continued to try to get Reid to calm down. She wasn't going to give up on him.

Almost as soon as Reid heard the familiar voice, the voice of the woman that had helped him, he slowly began to relax. The dream was changing. Mary had finished with the toy, now Rachel was trying to take care of him. The pain had even eased some making it easier to think, to realize that it had all been a dream.

Fighting the last tendrils of sleep, Reid opened his eyes and stared at Rachel. Those brown eyes were wide, fearful and almost childlike. It brought tears to her eyes. Absently she reached up and brushed his hair out of them so she could look at him more clearly.

"I want you to listen to me, Agent Reid," Rachel said, her voice quiet. She didn't much want to say this while the others were listening but this might be the last time she got to talk to him. There was something she really wanted him to know, that he clearly had to know.

At first Reid just looked at her. While the voice was all too familiar, he wasn't sure he'd ever seen the face before. He studied it to see if there was any recognition at all. Then her hands came up and rested on either side of his face, forcing him to concentrate on what she was saying.

"Agent Reid, none of this was your fault. You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. This rests on Mary's and my shoulders. We are responsible. If you need to hate someone for what was done to you, please, hate us. Promise me you won't hate yourself for any of this," Rachel said. Tears had sprung to her eyes and were running unheeded down her round cheeks. She needed him to hear this, to take it to heart and believe it.

When Spencer didn't immediately respond, she continued. "The only way Mary could think to grab you and young Jared were by running over you with her car. Then we kept you incapacitated with drugs. She knew that if you were at one hundred percent that you were beyond her ability to hurt or manipulate. Please, please don't blame yourself for any of this. We did it. We knew what we were doing. We will face the consequences of our actions. You and the others bare no responsibility or blame for any of it."

As she began to her little speech, Rachel watched as Reid's eyes traveled around the room, taking in Emily, J.J., Garcia, the paramedic and the police officer. As if this all wasn't bad enough that it had to be witnessed by so many people, two of which he didn't know. Then the words Rachel was saying started to sink in and she was the only thing he saw and heard.

The sincerity and intensity of her words and the openness of her face did something to Reid. He believed her. Now that the drugs were losing their hold over his system he was better able to rationalize things for himself as well. She was right. He was not responsible or to blame for it. What had happened to him was reprehensible but he did not bear the guilt of it. That belonged to Mary. The panic began to recede.

"Thank you," Spencer breathed as he looked into Rachel's brown eyes. What he saw looking back at him was not an unsub. There was no malice in her. She just wanted to help and he was grateful she had. The memories were still going to be there but he'd deal with them as they arose, just like all the others. He was, however, eternally embarrassed that the female members of his unit had seen all of this. Self-consciously, he glanced at the spectators, turned his eyes back to Rachel and then allowed his eyes to close.

At the moment, all he really wanted was sleep. He wasn't sure if it was just to escape all of the concerned eyes or because he was genuinely tired. It didn't really matter because before he could follow that line of thought he slipped into the warm, safe folds of sleep.

"Thank you," Hotch said from his own bed. He'd hoped the woman could help because he knew he couldn't. The memories were still too fresh for him as well. While intellectually he knew that everything Rachel had said was the truth, that he and the other men bore no responsibility for the things that had happened to them, guilt still gnawed at him. He was the Unit Chief. He should have found a way to prevent Reid's kidnapping and rape.

"You're welcome," Rachel said, suddenly appearing very young and vulnerable. She wasn't really looking at anyone, just staring at the floor, ready to return to her own room. Then her eyes came up and she looked at Hotch directly. "The same goes for you. You are not to blame."

The words hung in the air. Unable to withstand the discomfort of being in the room with all the 'normal' people, Rachel turned and fled back to her room. Deputy Cullen was a few steps behind her.

"What was that?" Emily asked quietly. Visions of Reid looking so panicked and distraught kept playing through her mind. She wasn't sure she'd ever get over it herself. She wasn't sure how the victims were going to do it either. But the woman's words seemed to have helped, for that she was grateful. That wasn't what came out, though. "Since when do we let unsubs talk to the victims?"

"Since I was hoping she could help," Hotch responded. He understood Emily's reaction. Until he'd been put in this situation where the lines between unsubs and victims were a little blurred, he would have never considered it either. But it worked. The fact that Reid was now sleeping quietly was proof of that.

"You're going to have to spend a little time explaining this one," Emily said. She knew Garcia and J.J. agreed with her on this one. She couldn't argue the results but she could sure argue the methodology.

"Agreed," Hotch said. "But not today." The urge to tell J.J. to check on Rachel to make sure she was all right nearly overpowered him. He needed to know that the woman was all right but it wasn't his place to order his people to do it. Besides, he all ready knew Rachel wasn't very comfortable around his colleagues. It probably wouldn't help her anyway.

"You're right," Emily admitted. For the first time she saw just how tired her boss really looked. He too could use some sleep. "We'll let you get some sleep."

Silently, Roy slipped over to Spencer and quickly took his vital signs. He was happy with what he found. The young man was stable and calm, a vast improvement over a few minutes ago. He moved over to Hotch and did the same. Then he followed the women as they left the two exhausted agents to get some rest. Hopefully this time it would be a little less eventful.

OOOOO

"Where were you?" Garcia hissed once they were outside the room. She'd rounded on the other two agents. "I didn't know what to do. I couldn't get him to calm down."

"I'm sorry, Garcia. We were outside speaking with the deputy organizing the search. They still haven't found Mary. I was hoping we'd have some good news for Hotch and Reid when we came back," Emily said.

"That was pretty strange," J.J. said her mind still on what had just transpired. Seeing that woman who'd started the whole thing comforting Reid didn't sit well with her. Her first reaction had been to throw the woman to the ground and cuff her. From Garcia's reaction, that was her thinking too.

"Everything about this whole thing has been strange," Emily stated. "I have the feeling it's going to stay that way until we find Mary."


	34. Chapter 34

_Hello! Thank you so very much for all your reviews!! They make me smile every time I see one in my inbox no matter what the content of it is! _

_There isn't much of Hotch in this chapter. I'm sorry about that. I'm trying to fill in some of the blanks because I think there'll probably only be one or two more chapters in this story. Then I'll get started on the sequel! I can only milk the hurt/comfort thing for so long before it starts to seem strained to me._

_Thanks for reading and especially for reviewing!!_

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR

The night passed by quietly. The paramedics took turns sleeping on the gurney from their own ambulance in the hallway. But they really weren't needed. The victims slept the rest of the night away.

Garcia maintained her watch over Hotch and Reid. J.J. and Emily spent time helping organize the search for the next sunrise. It was too dark in the woods and too dangerous to search at night. They'd learned the hard way when one of the helicopters nearly went down because the infrared didn't pick up a very large tree.

The deputies, National Guard and others had searched since reinforcements had arrived. They moved in concentric circles from the cabin as well as searching the tunnels beneath it. There had only been a few foot prints but no other sign of Mary. It was all very distressing. Emily especially wanted the woman found so they could get out of here as soon as Hotch and Reid were released from the hospital.

Sitting on the front steps of the hospital, Emily and J.J. waited for the sun to rise. It seemed to take forever. Ten minutes before it was due to come up, Sheriff Hicks' SUV pulled up beside the sidewalk. The older man stepped out looking much more refreshed than he had since they'd arrived.

"Good morning," Hicks stated as he moved to the back of his SUV and began unloading bags. "I've brought some clothes for Matt. There are also some here for Dave and Jared. I don't have a problem with entering their motel room but I wasn't about to go into a crime scene and get clothes for your two agents."

"Thank you but we've got that covered," J.J. said, a smile gracing her face. The man really was too efficient. It was a refreshing change from some of the smaller police forces they'd had to work with over the years.

"Good. Coffee?" Hicks asked as he offered both women paper cups full of the aromatic liquid. Now Emily was smiling too as she accepted the proffered cup. "How did things go last night?"

"Ah, there was a little drama but nothing worth waking you up for," Emily said. She wasn't going to go into any more detail than that unless she was asked specifically.

Now that his hands were free again, Hicks picked up the bags and carried them into the hospital. After a few hours of sleep the world looked a little less dark. He was still having trouble believing that Mary West had done all of this. He wasn't sure he'd ever fully believe it.

Right behind Hicks was Morgan's car. The two agents piled out of it and looked up at J.J. and Emily. The women could plainly see the questions in their faces as they advanced towards them.

"Good morning," Rossi said. He and Morgan hadn't stopped for a coffee mainly because they weren't sure which businesses would be open this time of the morning. Both of them were a little envious of the women.

"Morning," J.J. stated. "You too look better. Did you get some sleep?"

"Not a lot but enough for today," Morgan said. It was the truth. After being a member of the BAU, a person became used to having very little sleep and still be at the top of their game.

"How are they?" Rossi asked. It was the only thing he really wanted to know. After he found that out maybe he'd ask about the search for Mary, maybe.

"Reid and Aaron slept through most of the night. Matt and Jared are still coming out of the drugs they were given. They should be more coherent today," Emily said.

"Most of the night?" Rossi asked. He'd picked up on that immediately.

"Yeah, Reid had a nightmare. It took some work to get him calmed down," Emily added as she led them toward the front door. Remembering the events of the previous evening, she suddenly didn't want her coffee any more. She was afraid it might come back up at the wrong moment. With a sigh, she handed it over to Morgan.

"Is he okay?" Morgan asked as he accepted the cup.

"Yeah but we couldn't get him to wake up. Rachel had to come and talk to him," J.J. stated. What she thought about that was clearly written all over her face.

"Rachel? That doesn't make a lot of sense," Rossi said as they paced down the hallway to the room. He paused a few feet away to make sure they could continue speaking without their voices carrying inside.

"I know. The three of us tried everything we could think of and then Hotch suggested Rachel. Apparently she tended their wounds after Mary had finished with them. It's warped but it worked," Emily stated.

"I suppose on one level it makes sense. Was it her voice or her presence that calmed him?" Morgan asked. He hated the thought of the woman touching Reid. The kid had been touched enough.

"It seemed to be her voice. I had the feeling that he didn't recognize her face at all," Emily said.

"Okay, well, as long as it worked. We'll figure out how later. Do you two want to go to the hotel and get some sleep?" Rossi asked.

"No. I'd rather be out searching for Mary. There are a lot of bodies out there but there's also a lot of ground to cover. I'd feel better being out there doing something instead of trying to sleep," Emily replied. J.J. nodded her head in agreement.

"The sheriff just went inside?" Rossi asked. Upon getting an affirmative from both women he continued. "He should be able to get you out there. What about you, Morgan?"

"I'm with them. Hotch and Reid need to sleep and to know that the woman has been caught. We'll keep you informed."

OOOOO

A little hesitantly, Rossi stepped into the hospital room. He found Garcia sitting in the chair between the two beds frantically typing away on her laptop. He wondered briefly if the wifi stick she was using was interfering with the machines attached to the two agents. But he figured she would have thought of that.

"How are you?" Rossi asked when Garcia looked up at him.

"Fine. Where are the others?" Garcia asked. Her voice was quiet because she didn't want to disturb the two sleeping men. Glancing at them Rossi thought they both looked better but very young at the same time. He supposed everyone looked young when they were asleep. All of their natural defences were down, their masks they showed the world were gone.

"They've joined the search for Mary. Sheriff Hicks is driving them out to the rendezvous point. I hear the night wasn't all peaceful," Rossi stated. He wanted to hear Garcia's version of things.

"No, it wasn't. I'm glad the others are out searching. We really need to catch that bitch so they can all see that justice is done. As far as I'm concerned she should be strapped to the chair for what she's done," Garcia growled. Reid's nightmare had been horrible. The fact that she couldn't help him had been even worse. Normally a nonviolent person, the thought of beating the woman to a pulp kept crossing her mind.

"I can't say I disagree," Rossi said. Reid shifted in his sleep and his face grimaced as the pain registered. He waited for the grimace to pass but it didn't. Reid shifted again, trying to alleviate it without success. "Do you know what they're giving him for the pain? Has anyone told them about his dependence on Didlaudid.

"Yes, they know. I sent over a copy of Aaron and Spence's medical records before I headed over here. I'm not sure what they're giving him but it doesn't seem to be very effective," Garcia stated. She'd spent the night watching young Spencer's face screw up in pain. Luckily it didn't seem to be bad enough to wake him up.

"We have him on extra strength Tylenol," Dr. Marcus informed them as he stepped inside the door. He picked up Reid's chart and quickly scanned it. "You're right that it's not very effective but given the drugs that have all ready been placed in his system we don't want to take a chance on anything stronger like Codeine."

"Thank you," Rossi said. He wasn't present during Reid's drug usage but he hated the thought of the young genius using mind altering substances. Reid's mind was unique and phenomenal, the last thing he needed was to damage it, to make things unclear. Even now Rossi had moments where he was astonished by what the younger man was capable of.

Dr. Marcus moved over to Aaron's chart and checked it as well. He was gratified to see that both men had been stable throughout the night. He wanted to keep them in hospital for a few more days to make sure Aaron didn't run into problems with infection and Reid didn't injure his hip worse than it was.

"When will you release them, doctor?" Rossi asked. He had the distinct feeling that the search was going to come up empty. Mary knew the lay of the land too well. If they hadn't found her yet chances were very good that she was long gone. Rossi wanted to get the two men back to familiar surroundings where he knew they would be safe.

"We'll see how they do in the next 48 hours. There are a few things that I want to make sure don't happen before I let them go home," Dr. Marcus answered while he made a quick note on Aaron's chart.

"Have you checked in on the other two yet?" Rossi asked.

"Yes. Both of them are showing signs of coming around. The drugs have run their course so I expect them both to wake up in the next couple of hours. Do you think I need to get a psychologist or psychiatrist here for when they are awake? I've never dealt with this kind of trauma so soon after it happened so I'm not sure of what the protocol is," the doctor admitted.

"Let's wait until they come around to decide that," Rossi suggested.

Further conversation was prevented by a low moan issuing from Reid. All three of them turned toward the young man. His face was still screwed up in pain but his eyes flickered open and came to rest on his audience. Damn but Reid was tired of being stared at.

"Are you in a lot of pain?" Dr. Marcus asked as he did a cursory examination. As soon as he touched Reid's hip the young man hissed in pain. "I'll take that as a yes. I'm aware of your history with drugs, dr. Reid, so I'm going to give you the option. Do you want something stronger?"

Still a little foggy with sleep it took Reid a full ten seconds to run through both sides of the argument for and against taking the drugs. As much as he wanted the pain to stop he wasn't willing to take the chance. He'd been lucky so far that the valium Mary had given him hadn't reawakened his need to medicate. He wasn't willing to take the chance that that would change.

"No. I'll take the pain," Reid said, his voice still a little scratchy from last night. He had a dim recollection of having a nightmare. Then there was the voice, the one that had helped him inside the tunnels. He remembered the woman that had been standing over him but she didn't quite seem to match the person he'd created in his mind.

"Okay. From the chart I see that you're both due for your pain killers. I'll get them and be right back," Dr. Marcus said before leaving the room.

"How are you feeling?" Rossi asked Reid. He felt so much better seeing the young profiler awake and aware. It seemed like it had been a very long time since that last time he'd seen this.

"Sore," Reid breathed, a crooked grimace on his lean face. The pain really was bad. He wished he didn't have to worry about being an addict and take the stronger drugs. But he was an addict so he would live with the pain until it passed.

OOOOO

"Dave?" The voice was quiet, barely audible. Even in a dead sleep Dave heard it and was springing to his feet. That had been his brother. In two strides he was beside Jared's bed and was looking down into his kid brother's blue-green eyes.

"Hey, Jare, how you doing?" Dave asked as he moved even closer. Damn it was good to see those blurry eyes staring up at him. It had been far too long.

"Where are we?" Jared asked. Certain that the dark figure hanging over him was his brother, Jared scanned the rest of the room. It wasn't familiar.

"You're in the hospital. Some bitch drove over you in her car and dragged you out to the middle of the woods," Dave explained. He wasn't worried about contaminating witness testimony. He was just glad to have his brother back.

Images of what had transpired over the last few days flashed through Jared's mind. They were disjointed, out of order but he still got the gist of it. It made him mad as well.

"Where is she?" Jared growled. He tried to force himself off the bed. The feeling that he'd spent far too much time lying down was gnawing at his mind. The need to stand up on his two feet was overwhelming.

"She got away," Dave said after a moment. He'd heard enough in the halls to know that much. They were still searching but he knew in his gut that the woman was gone.

"Dude, when can we get the hell out of here?" Jared asked. He'd managed to get into a sitting position but that was it. He felt as weak was a kitten and he hated it. A quick inventory of the aches and pains emanating from his body told him that nothing appeared to be broken. Well, he hoped so anyway. His side hurt like hell.

"I don't know. The doctor stopped in a little while ago. I'll go let him know you're awake," Dave said. With a last glance at his brother, Dave headed down the hallway.

Sitting up in the bed, Jared looked over at Matt. The guy was familiar to him. He recognized his face even though he couldn't remember his voice. He had the feeling that he'd never seen the man awake. Propping his body up on one arm, Jared used the other to examine where Mary had hit him with the gun.

The area was slightly raised and tender but he didn't think that the damage was extensive. He did the same thing with the rest of the sore spots, even his side. He really wanted to get out of here. Before Mary came back for him.

There was noise in the hallway. Then an older woman raced into the room. For a split second Jared thought it might be Mary. He pulled back away from the woman until he realized it wasn't his kidnapper. From the way she was touching Matt's face and making quiet noises at him Jared assumed she must be his mother.

Slowly Matt came around and then stared blurrily at his mother. He could see that she was very upset and relieved to see him but he couldn't quite figure out why. After all, he'd only been gone for the weekend, right? Why did he feel like he'd gone through the ringer? He didn't remember drinking enough to feel this hung over either.

"Mom, please, it's okay," Matt muttered, his voice slightly slurred. He'd never seen his mom this distraught before. Something was up but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what it was.

"I knew something was wrong. I knew you were in trouble when you didn't come home after the weekend. Oh, thank God they found you. Thank God you're still alive," Matt's mother said, tears streaming down her face while she pulled her son into a bear hug.

New aches and pains let themselves be known but Matt didn't have the heart to tell his mom that she was hurting him. Maybe he'd gotten into a fight at the jamboree and been knocked unconscious. Matt glanced over at the other person in the room. He didn't even look vaguely familiar. What the hell?

A man in a white jacket that Matt took to be a doctor came barrelling into the room followed shortly by another man in jeans and a t-shirt. Definitely not a doctor. He tried to see beyond his mother's shoulder what they were going to do. He was suddenly filled with fear that they might want to try to touch him.

The doctor spent a few minutes examining the other guy in the room before turning his attention to Matt. The young man was nearly overwhelmed with the fear burning in his stomach. He watched the doctor's hands, making sure he knew exactly where they were.

"So, Matt, how are you feeling?" the doctor asked as he checked his head.

"I'm fine. What am I doing here?" Matt asked in return. The doctor seemed to know him but Matt had no idea who he was.

"What do you remember?" Dr. Marcus hedged.

"I was at the music jamboree yesterday. Now I'm here. What else is there?" Matt replied as he looked between his mother, who looked like she'd aged ten years since he'd seen her last, and the doctor.

His mother and the doctor exchanged looks. Matt knew he was missing something. His body told him that things had happened that he couldn't remember. That scared him even more.

"What?! What did I miss?"


	35. Chapter 35

_Hi. So, this is the final chapter. It feels kind of abrupt to me but it was the best I could come up with. Sorry. I suck at endings._

_Thank you to GOTHGIRLREID for telling me the proper spelling for Dilaudid. I really didn't know._

_Let me know what you think of this. I'm really curious to know._

_Thanks for reading and especially for reviewing. _

_Susanne_

CHAPTER THIRTY FIVE

After taking Morgan, Emily and J.J. out to the search base camp, Sheriff Hicks returned. He'd put it off long enough. It was time to get statements from all four men and from Rachel. It was looking very much like Mary had gotten away. On his way back into town, Hicks had stopped at her brothers' places but Donnie and David claimed that they hadn't seen her. They were barely civil, not that he blamed them.

It was a slow, gruelling process but it had to be done. Matt wasn't a lot of help because he still couldn't really remember anything. He got the occasional flash but there was no time line, he had no idea what came first. When Hicks showed him a series of pictures Matt was able to pick out Rachel as the woman who'd helped him down the grandstands but that was it.

The more Hicks listened to the men's stories, the more he realized he really didn't know Mary. Jared, Reid and Hotch were all able to pick her picture out of the line up. They were also able to pick Rachel out but none of them indicated that she had hurt them.

That gave Hicks hope. He really didn't want to put Rachel in jail. She was more than repentant and willing to do anything he asked. He hadn't enjoyed transferring her to the station. There he'd taken her statement personally. Then he gave her the chance to call her family. He hadn't gone to them yet to tell them where their daughter was. Hicks wasn't sure he wanted to be there when they found out.

Instead, Hicks set Rachel down in the hallway outside his office with his cordless phone. Deputy Cullen was still there, still hovering and so he let him supervise while she dialled the phone number with trembling hands.

"Hi, Mom, it's Rachel," Rachel managed to say without breaking down when she heard her mother pick up the phone.

"Rachel? Where are you? Your work has been calling every day this week looking for you!" Mrs. Carson asked. Rachel could hear the concern and fear in her mother's voice. It was only going to get worse.

"Listen, Mom. I'm in trouble. I've done something awful. I'm down at the Sheriff's station. They're going to hold me over until I can appear before the judge," Rachel explained in a rush. She had to get it out fast because she could all ready feel the knot of emotion beginning to choke her. While she spoke she was very aware of Jack's presence just a few feet away.

"What are you talking about? Rachel, have you been drinking?" It was the only explanation that made sense. Mrs. Carson had never had to worry about Rachel. She hadn't done anything wrong since getting caught shoplifting in the fifth grade.

"No, Mom. I did this. I've filled out all the paperwork. I'll probably be going to jail," Rachel said. The lump in her throat was getting worse, threatening to strangle her voice. "I drugged a young man at the jamboree instead of helping him to the first aid station. I took him home and took care of him. Then Mary found out. Do you remember Mary?"

"Yes, I remember her. I was glad when you stopped being her friend. What do you mean you drugged a young man? That doesn't sound like you at all Rachel. Were you doing drugs or something?" Mrs. Carson asked. She was still trying to find excuses for her daughter's bizarre behaviour.

"No, Mom. I was just tired of being alone and he needed me. Mary found out about him and did terrible things to him. I couldn't stop her. Then she kidnapped three more men. Two of them were FBI agents. They're searching for her now because she ran away. I'm so sorry." Rachel lost it then. Her mother was talking, trying to get more information but Rachel couldn't speak any more. The tears were welling up, silencing her. Frantically, Rachel looked around for some way to escape her mother's voice. It was only making matters worse.

Seeing the woman's distress, Deputy Cullen stepped toward her and gently took the receiver from her hands. The woman virtually collapsed to the floor, sobs wracking her body. Sitting with her back against the wall, Rachel wrapped her arms around her bent knees and cried into her arms.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. Rachel can't talk any longer. Sheriff Hicks or someone else will be in contact with you," Deputy Cullen said before disconnecting the call. He looked down at the woman. Then he walked a few feet away and let her be.

OOOOO

"When can Jared get out of here, doc?" Dave demanded. Dr. Marcus was becoming very tired of the question. He knew the brothers hated hospitals but he wasn't ready to let the younger one go. He wanted to keep him for one more night, just to make sure.

"Tomorrow, if there are no complications," Dr. Marcus said. He'd stopped in the room to check on Jared and Matt. The younger man had yet to remember anything. Dr. Marcus wasn't sure if that was a blessing or not. Eventually the memories would break through. Then Matt would have to deal with them.

"Oh, come on. Jared's fine," Dave growled. He glanced at his brother for confirmation. Jared was sitting up in his bed looking very bored. There wasn't a TV in the room and he'd all ready read all of the magazines Dave could find.

"I hope you're right. Just in case I want to observe him for another twelve hours. You too, Matt," Dr. Marcus said. "Since there aren't any monitors around here so you could use your laptop if you'd like. "

That brought a spark to Jared's face. "Can I use my internet stick to go online?" Jared asked.

"Sure. It shouldn't interfere with anything." Smiling, Dr. Marcus left the room. He had to go check on the FBI agents.

Opening the door he found the ever present Ms. Garcia sitting in the chair staring at him. Dr. Marcus had gotten used to the woman glaring daggers at him every time he stepped into the room. Once she realized who it was she always softened but he didn't miss the fact that her hand was hidden in her bag every time.

"Good afternoon Ms. Garcia," Dr. Marcus said as he stepped up the Dr. Reid to do a quick examination. The young doctor was sleeping lightly. It was probably the best way to escape the pain he was in. Dr. Marcus knew the younger man was in a great deal of pain and that the Tylenol really didn't do a whole lot. It took a lot of guts to be willing to live through that. As he palpated Reid's hip, the young profiler groaned and tried to move away. He was still propped up on his side but they were going to have to find a new position for him soon before bed sores started up. That was the last thing the kid needed.

"Sorry," Marcus said quietly.

"When can we take them home?" Garcia asked.

"That seems to be the theme of the day. I need to monitor Agent Hotchner for at least 48 hours to make sure he doesn't come down with an infection. I also want to make sure Dr. Reid doesn't injure his hip. I know you don't like hospitals. Most people don't but I really do think they need to stay a little while longer," the doctor said. He moved over to Agent Hotchner's bed. The older man was lying quietly but was definitely awake.

"How are you feeling?" Dr. Marcus asked as he checked the IV. He felt the man's dark eyes staring at him without looking. The agent really did have an intensity about him that was a little disconcerting.

"Fine," Hotch replied. It wasn't entirely the truth. He could use some more pain killer, what he'd been given so far helped to take the edge off but that was about it. However, he knew Reid was in even more pain with fewer drugs so he held his tongue. Besides, he didn't like how the drugs fogged his mind.

"I somehow doubt that but okay," Dr. Marcus replied. In most hospitals the nurses would clean the bandages but he preferred to do it himself. "I'm going to redress your wound. It's not going to be pleasant."

"I'll be fine," Hotch said. Then he gritted his teeth as the doctor rolled him most of the way onto his stomach so that he could reach his shoulder. The pain in his groin wasn't as bad but it was still enough to take his breath away. It embarrassed the hell out of him when the doctor came in and changed the cold pack he had down there. It seemed to be helping but not quickly enough by Hotch's estimation.

"Sorry about that," Dr. Marcus apologized. He felt the man's muscles tense under his hands and knew the pain had reared its ugly head again. He made a mental note to increase the pain medication while he carefully undid the back of Aaron's gown to reveal the swath of bandages.

No matter how careful he was, Dr. Marcus couldn't keep from pulling the sound while he removed the tape they'd used to secure the damned thing. Agent Hotchner barely made a sound. Yet the doctor could tell that it hurt, at lot. He was relieved, however, when he finally got through the bandages and got a good look at the wound. It was clear of obvious infection and was showing signs of healing.

"How is it?" Hotch asked. He tried to keep his voice as normal as possible but failed miserably.

"The exit wound is looking good. If this keeps up you should be able to start physical therapy in a matter of days instead of weeks. I'm going to replace the bandages on this and check the entrance wound."

As the doctor worked on him, Aaron concentrated on watching Spencer breathe. It helped him move out of himself while the pain flared and spread. Still, he realized he was panting quietly. The doctor didn't seem to notice so Hotch ignored it too.

Finished his examination, Dr. Marcus left the room and headed out to deal with the other patients that were piling up at the reception area. It may be the emergency room but they got everything from cardiac problems to ingrown toe nails. He nodded at Dr. Luka and took the first file on the top of the pile.

OOOOO

The next day the searchers were no closer to finding Mary. The woman appeared to have fallen off the face of the earth. Even her brothers had no suggestions for them to look at.

Matt and Jared were released because there really wasn't a reason to keep them. Dave was ecstatic. The cops had their statements about what had happened. It was going to have to do because he had no intentions of coming back here. Ever.

Morgan, Emily and J.J. watched as Rachel went through the process of standing before the judge and pleading guilty to the charges of kidnapping and conspiracy to kidnap in the case of the three Mary took. The judge decided to wait on sentencing for a month in case Mary was caught. He too was hoping to decrease Rachel's sentence by putting most of the blame on Mary.

While Rachel was being escorted out of the courtroom back into custody, Morgan watched the woman. He still hated her for causing all of this but he'd read the statements and knew that she wasn't responsible for what had happened to Hotch and Reid. Still, he hated her.

OOOOO

Two days later the doctors released Hotch and Reid to go back to Quantico. They were still to be under close observation by their own physicians but there was no reason to hold them any longer. Reid was on a pair of crutches to take the weight off his hip while Hotch had a sling for his arm. It drove them both nuts. But it was so much better than the alternative.

Garcia settled the two men in the back seat of her large car and gunned the engine. They couldn't get out of here long enough. She just hoped she could outrun the memories as well. The others were going to spend the rest of the day on the search and then return to Quantico themselves. Tomorrow they were all going to have to go back to work. Garcia just hoped Hotch and Reid were ready for it.

The End.....not really.

_I'll start the sequel tomorrow or the next day. It'll be called "Mary's Revenge". Not real original but it's all I could come up with at the moment._

_I hope to see you there!!_

_Susanne_


End file.
